The number of direct-to-consumer advertisements for molecular-based tests rose exponentially from 1997 to 2016, according to a medical marketing analysis released earlier this month in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Simultaneously, laboratory test manufacturers increased spending on ads and direct spending on physicians who work with the tests from $75.4m to $82.6m.

A revised bill is circulating in both the US House and Senate to revamp FDA regulation of diagnostics. It would allow the agency to leverage a pre-certification process to validate test developers and includes other updates that are likely to appeal to the lab sector. But user fees and other elements could still be contentious.

The US Senate overwhelmingly approved a bill on 16 January to implement the US-Mexico-Canada agreement, which includes a new chapter on the handling of medical devices supported by the medtech industry.