Skip to main content
Professional Technical IVT

CLIA-waived

Pronunciation: CLEE-ah waived

Laboratory tests approved for point-of-care use in clinical settings without extensive laboratory oversight requirements.

Full Definition

CLIA-waived refers to laboratory tests that have been approved by the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA) for use in clinical settings with minimal regulatory oversight due to their simplicity and low risk of erroneous results. In behavioral health settings, CLIA-waived tests commonly include urine drug screens, rapid HIV tests, and pregnancy tests that support clinical decision-making and treatment monitoring. These tests require specific documentation of quality control procedures, staff training records, and result interpretation protocols, even though they don't require the extensive oversight of high-complexity laboratory tests.

Usage

Usage note: Hyphenated when used as an adjective; requires documentation of quality control procedures.

In Context

  • "The clinic uses CLIA-waived urine drug screens for immediate treatment decision-making." — Laboratory procedure manual
  • "Staff must complete annual training on CLIA-waived test procedures and quality control requirements." — Training requirement documentation

Also known as

CLIA-approved point-of-care testing waived testing

Contrasted with

high-complexity testing laboratory-only testing

Don't confuse with

FDA-approved laboratory-developed tests research-only tests

Editors from these organisations have used our services since 1998

Reuters BBC Oxford University Press Penguin Random House Springer Microsoft Suncor Energy United Nations Fisher Investments IBM The Home Depot KODAK CHEVRON