National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Sciences

It was founded in 1973, after the United States Department of Education pressured the American Society for Clinical Pathology(ASCP) to disband their Board of Schools (BOS) following monopolization concerns. At the time of its founding, there were seven categories of laboratory personnel: Clinical Laboratory Assistant (CLA), Medical Laboratory Technician (MLT), Medical Technologist (MT), Cytotechnologist (CT), and Histotechnologist (HT). ==Programs==

Decreases in laboratory reimbursement have led to a decline in the number of NAACLS accredited MLS programs from ~700 in 1975 to ~240 programs in 2002, where it has held since. NAACLS program graduates are eligible to sit for American Society for Clinical Pathology(ASCP) certifications. ==Stance on non-accredited training programs==

NAACLS has criticized the rise of non-accredited, on-the-job training (OJT) programs as undermining the laboratory profession. ==References==