Verizon's ICSA Labs Among First Accredited Health Information Technology Testing Laboratories

MECHANICSBURG, Pa., July 31, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- ICSA Labs, an independent division of Verizon, is now accredited as a Health Information Technology (HIT) Testing Laboratory by the National Voluntary Laboratory Accreditation Program (NVLAP) Health Information Technology Laboratory Accreditation Program.  ICSA Labs accreditation confirms it has the ability to meet or exceed technical requirements set by NVLAP management.

NVLAP accreditation is one of the prerequisites testing labs must meet in order to apply to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Office of the National Coordinator (ONC) for authorization to certify Electronic Health Records (EHR) technology in the ONC Permanent Certification Program.

"NVLAP accreditation as a Health IT test laboratory is a testament to the competency of ICSA Labs' testing staff, the strength of our quality management program and our organizational commitment to the Health Information Technology industry," said George Japak, managing director, ICSA Labs.  "As one of the premier security and software testing laboratories, we look forward to continuing our work with health IT stakeholders and our colleagues at the ONC to help deliver improved healthcare through certified technology such as Electronic Health Records."

The ONC's Permanent Certification Program was established by regulation in a final rule published in the Federal Register on Jan. 7, 2011. The ONC is the principal federal entity charged with coordination of nationwide efforts to implement and use the most advanced health information technology and the electronic exchange of health information.

The requirements met by ICSA Labs were set forth in ISO 17025, NIST Handbook 150:2006, NVLAP Procedures and General Requirements, and NIST Handbook 150-31:2011, NVLAP Healthcare IT Testing, along with the technical specifications detailed in the Final Rule establishing the ONC's Permanent Certification Program (CFR 170). The ICSA Labs NVLAP Code is 200697-0.

About NVLAP
NVLAP provides unbiased third-party recognition of quality performance by a laboratory through strict series of assessments.  NVLAP accreditation represents a laboratory's proven ability to meet or exceed technical requirements set by NVLAP management. NVLAP is in full conformance with the standards of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) and has become an industry standard for excellence. Areas of assessment include: quality systems, personnel, equipment, measurement traceability, sampling, accommodation and environment, test and calibration methods, handling and reports. For additional information, please contact Dana S. Leaman at [email protected].

About ICSA Labs
ICSA Labs, an independent division of Verizon (NYSE, Nasdaq: VZ), offers third-party testing and certification of security and health IT products, as well as network-connected devices, to measure product compliance, reliability and performance for many of the world's top security vendors.  ICSA Labs is an ISO/IEC 17025:2005 accredited and 9001:2008 registered organization. Visit http://www.icsalabs.com and http://www.icsalabs.com/blogs for more information.

SOURCE Verizon