Outage notice:
Due to the global information outage that occurred this morning, Athena is taking swift action to respond, recover and restore our operations. We appreciate your patience as we work toward returning to normal operations.
DNA must be extracted at a CLIA-certified laboratory or a laboratory meeting equivalent requirements as determined by the CAP and/or the CMS
A physician may cancel a test at any time before specimen testing is completed. We regret that a cancellation request received after the test result has been reported cannot be honored. Once results have been reported, the appropriate party will be billed.
Quality assurance is of utmost importance to Athena. If there is any question regarding a test result, please contact our Client Services Department to discuss the possibility of repeating the test (1-800-394-4493), extension 2.
Additional tests may be requested on specimens at Athena within six months of specimen receipt, provided that adequate quantities of the specimen are available and stability is not exceeded. Subject to specific state law. However, each additional request must be accompanied by a new Test Requisition Form.
Under certain circumstances, a test result may not be conclusive. These situations will be reviewed on an individual basis. The reasons are generally explained in the result report. If there are questions, please contact our Client Services Department for details at (1-800-394-4493), extension 2.
Hard copies of test results are generally mailed out within 12 hours following the laboratory reporting the results. To request an additional faxed test result the same day,contact our Client Services Department at (1-800-394-4493), extension 2.
If Athena sends a specimen back, due to a client error, our Client Service Representatives will obtain the client’s courier account number for payment of shipping. When an account number cannot be provided, Athena will bill the requesting party a $50.00 handling fee.
The laboratory will ship muscle and serum specimens every Monday. If Monday is a holiday, then Tuesday will become the shipping day. Rush orders will incur a $50.00 handling fee. All muscle specimens will be shipped with at least seven pounds of dry ice. Serum specimens will be shipped at room temperature unless otherwise indicated.
If any testing of the specimen was performed at Athena, a written release form must be signed and received prior to shipment. Please contact our Client Service Representatives for more information at (1-800-394-4493), extension 2.
Consultations are generated within Athena’s laboratory processing department and given to our Client Service Representatives for follow up. Consultations are necessary when all pertinent information needed for processing the test request are not available on the Test Requisition Form. The Client Services Department will contact the referring physician or reference laboratory to obtain this missing information. It is important that we follow up with these consults as soon as the sample arrives at Athena in order to ensure an accurate and timely result report is delivered to you.
Policy Changes
The policies outlined are listed for the convenience of our clients. Policies are subject to change at Athena’s sole discretion.