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National Accrediting
Agency for Clinical
Laboratory Sciences
5600 N River Rd
Suite 720
Rosemont, IL 60018

773.714.8880
773.714.8886 (FAX)

info@naacls.org
http://www.naacls.org

Dr. NAACLS

Advice for Accredited and Approved Programs

Dear Dr. NAACLS,
I have both an accredited NAACLS program and an approved NAACLS program. Could you explain how the fees are structured and billed?
Signed,
Uncertain Program Director

Dear Uncertain:
The accreditation process and approval process are very similar in that they both rely on a review of self-study documents produced by programs. However, unlike approval, accreditation also requires a site visit, and there is a cost for site visitor travel expenses.

Both accredited programs and approved programs have annual fees and application fees. For accredited programs, the annual fee is $1200 and is billed every July. For approved programs, the annual fee is $1100 and is billed either in October or in April, depending on when the program was originally first granted approval. The application fee is billed when NAACLS receives the application, and is $600 for accredited programs and $200 for approved programs.

For approved programs, the annual fee and the application fee are the only applicable fees. The approved program will be billed the annual fee of $1100 every year, and, every four years, will be billed an application fee on the application for continuing approval.

For accredited programs, there are three additional fees.

1. The first of these fees is the clinical affiliate fee. This fee is included on the invoice for the annual fee, and is a $25 fee for each clinical affiliation the program maintains, up to a maximum of $300 or 12 affiliations.

2. The second of these fees is the Site Visit Preparation Fee. This is a $500 fee that helps defray the administrative costs of setting up the site visit.

3. Finally, the third of these fees is the cost of the site visit itself.

The costs for the site visit are actual costs. When arranging a site visit, NAACLS contacts the NAACLS travel agency and receives an estimate of how much it will cost to send the site visit team to the program. Based on that estimate, NAACLS invoices the program for 80 percent of the expected cost. After the visit, NAACLS bills for the remainder or returns any remaining funds.

Continuing programs are assigned two site visitors to visit the sponsoring institution. NAACLS staff makes every effort to find appropriate, knowledgeable individuals who are in nearby states, in order to keep the travel costs down. Most of the time, the institutions are able to assist by identifying hotels that have special rates for visitors to the institution, offering on-site transportation, and negotiating meal arrangements. NAACLS attempts to take these fairly common cost-saving practices into account in its estimates.

In sum, an accredited program will be invoiced annually for an annual fee of $1200 plus $25 per affiliate up to 12. Every five to seven years, depending on the award granted, the program would be billed $600 for an application fee, $500 for a site visit preparation fee, and the actual cost of the site visit.

Since the majority of programs under review at the last CLSPRC meeting received awards of seven years, their next site visit cost can be averaged over seven years.

Please don't hesitate to contact the office if you have additional questions.
Sincerely,
Dr. NAACLS