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IAC
Newsletter
Change In Policy: Delay Status
NEW RULES IN EFFECT FOR DELAY LABS
Autumn 2008
After an application for accreditation is received by the
IAC, it is reviewed by two peer reviewers who, based
on the information provided and its compliance with
the applicable Standards, provide recommendations regarding the accreditation decision. After this information is compiled, the final review and decisions are made by the division Boards of Directors. Potential final decisions rendered by the Board include grant, provisional grant, site visit or delay.
A final decision of grant awards the laboratory accreditation for three years in the applicable testing areas. Provisional grant decisions afford the lab twelve months to provide additional documentation confirming adherence to specific standards not met in the initial application submission. A site visit decision requires the laboratory to undergo an investigative onsite inspection prior to the Board making its final decision as the application submission was insufficient to determine compliance with the Standards. (This differs from a random site visit, which the IAC performs as internal quality assurance at the IAC’s expense.)
If an application does not adequately demonstrate adherence to the Standards, the decision is made to delay the accreditation. Laboratories are notified of the specific areas of non-compliance and are required to submit detailed additional information documenting compliance.
Previously, a laboratory could remain in delayed status for the succeeding three-year period; the laboratory may have provided any number of additional materials submissions to document compliance that, following review, remained in non-compliance with the Standards. The result was a repeated review of the data, requiring substantial staff and peer reviewer time utilized in the processing, tracking, and reviewing of data as well as storage of the extra records.
In re-examining this policy, the IAC Board of Directors determined that streamlining the delay process would further refine its intended effect of improving both the laboratory’s quality and overall compliance with the published Standards in a more timely fashion. The following policy will be adopted beginning September 1, 2008:
Upon receiving a delayed accreditation decision, the laboratory will:
- have one year to provide the additionally requested
documentation demonstrating adherence to the Standards as outlined in the accreditation notification letter
- be permitted to submit one set of delay material to the
applicable IAC division, free of charge
- be assessed a $200 review fee if, after providing the
additional material, the laboratory still has not demonstrated compliance and further information is required
- have a maximum of three additional delay material
submissions to demonstrate compliance; if continued
non-compliance is documented after review of the three
resubmissions, the laboratory’s application will be denied
- all accreditation fees will be non-refundable
Laboratories with questions about delay status are encouraged to contact the IAC
at 800-838-2110.
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