Toronto-based LifeLabs Medical Laboratory Services announced yesterday it has entered into an agreement to purchase B.C. Biomedical Laboratories Ltd.
Both organizations provide patient diagnostic and lab testing services, as well as home care and long-term care visits.
"With increasing demand for testing services and a challenging fiscal environment, we need to become even more effective and efficient in ensuring British Columbians receive the best service and reliable access to testing," said Sue Paish, president and CEO of LifeLabs.
"At the same time, we need to continue to invest in technologies and innovation for patients and health care providers."
B.C. Biomedical has been in operation in the province for more than 50 years and is currently owned by Dr. C. J. Coady Associates, a partnership of more than 40 lab medicine practitioners. It currently serves around two million patients every year through 45 facilities.
Paish, who joined LifeLabs in May 2012, is the former CEO of Vancouver-based Pharmasave, and divides her time between Vancouver – where she still lives in her family home – and Toronto.
LifeLabs serves 10 million patients yearly, including four million British Columbians, and has 80 centres in the province.
The purchase is subject to federal and provincial regulatory approvals and is expected to be completed this spring.
