The HHS Proficiency Examination (formerly HEW Proficiency Examination) refers to an American medical technologist certification offered by the Department of Health Education and Welfare (HEW) and subsequently United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
[1][2] The HEW/HHS exam qualified individuals to serve as high complexity general supervisors under Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments(CLIA) 1992 without a degree.
[5][6] The Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA) was a proponent of the exam noting that it should "significantly increase the pool of personnel qualified for technologist positions in independent labs.
[7] American Association of Bioanalysts (AAB) and the International Society for Clinical Laboratory Technology (ISCLT) supported its reinstatement, while ASCP opposed it.
[12] The notes used during the reviews were compiled into a reference manual that became the PER Handbook which continued into its tenth edition in 2016.