Mobile electrodiagnostic laboratories provide substandard patient care: An educational report

Mobile electrodiagnostic (EDx) laboratories often do not appear to comply with Medicare rules or the American Association of Neuromuscular & Electrodiagnostic Medicine (AANEM) standards.

The AANEM Professional Practice Committee reached a consensus based on expert opinion on the typical deficiencies of EDx studies performed by mobile EDx laboratories and made recommendations on proper performance.

Mobile EDx laboratories should be registered as independent diagnostic testing facilities (IDTFs) and be held to the standards established by the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services. Testing performed in a mobile EDx laboratory is often performed: (1) without a physical exam by a qualified EDx physician; (2) without adequate physician supervision; (3) without interpretation "on site" or in "real time"; (4) without an accompanying needle electromyography study; and (5) with an excessive number of tests.

The AANEM recommends that payers require companies that perform studies in a mobile EDx laboratory but have failed to register as an IDTF to be held to the standards listed in the federal rules.