<P> Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA) of 1988 are United States federal regulatory standards that apply to all clinical laboratory testing performed on humans in the United States, except clinical trials and basic research . </P> <P> In accord with the CLIA, the CLIA Program sets standards and issues certificates for clinical laboratory testing . CLIA defines a clinical laboratory as any facility which performs laboratory testing on specimens derived from humans for the purpose of providing information for: </P> <Ul> <Li> diagnosis, prevention, or treatment of disease or impairment </Li> <Li> Health assessments </Li> </Ul>

The objective of the clinical laboratory improvement amendments (clia) is