Press Release Details

"The Digital Economy is providing us with new tools to enhance the effectiveness and productivity of our core laboratory testing business," Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Kenneth W. Freeman told shareholders at Quest Diagnostics’ annual meeting of shareholders this morning. "Doctors, our traditional customer base, are becoming increasingly web-enabled. We intend to provide them with a range of e-commerce solutions which will offer everything from secure online access to confidential patient test results and ordering of tests and supplies to relevant updates on clinical developments."

Mr. Freeman announced several new e-commerce initiatives designed to help physician clients access laboratory information more efficiently:

• First, the company introduced a new service offering physicians secure access to their patients’ confidential lab results via the Internet through Quest Diagnostics’ own web site: www.questdiagnostics.com. The service moves into phased implementation at customer sites in several states beginning today, and replaces or complements a range of existing technologies used to provide results. Quest Diagnostics said it expects to offer this service to customers nationally before the summer.
• In addition, the company said it had launched the beta testing phase of a new data service that allows doctors to order lab tests directly from Quest Diagnostics over the Internet. Mr. Freeman said the company intended to expand this test with a full national launch later in the year.
• Working with another partner, the company is piloting an initiative to provide physicians access to electronic medical records in Denver. This program enables some of the 500 members of a major physician group to access patient-related clinical data, including test results, online via the Internet.

Separately, Mr. Freeman announced that through its relationship with Caresoft, Inc., Quest Diagnostics had launched a new service that, for the first time, enables consumers to securely access their confidential clinical laboratory test results online. This online service is designed to help educate consumers about their health, provide them with a better understanding of their test results, and enable them to increase the effectiveness of time spent with their doctors during regular visits. Individuals who register for this service, now can download their laboratory test results on a special, secure area of Caresoft’s MyDailyApple.com web site, called MyLabCenter.com. The service is available where state regulations permit.

"Educated and health-conscious consumers want and need access to information—including their personal medical records—in order to intelligently manage their own health," said Mr. Freeman. "Until today, the kind of personalized information people need to really manage their own health simply had not been available: secure access to confidential lab test results and personalized medical records."

Quest Diagnostics is the nation's leading provider of diagnostic testing, information and services with annualized revenues of more than $3 billion. The testing performed on human specimens helps doctors diagnose, treat and monitor disease; enables employers to detect workplace drug abuse; and supports pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies in clinical trials of new therapeutics worldwide. Quest Informatics analyzes laboratory and other medical data to help health care providers improve the care of patients. Additional company information can be found on the Internet at: www.questdiagnostics.com.