Quest Diagnostics Reminds Women to Make Their Health a Priority During National Women's Health Week

MADISON, N.J., May 16, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- This week, National Women's Health Week, Quest Diagnostics (NYSE: DGX), the world's leading provider of diagnostic testing, information and services, joins the American Cancer Society Choose You® movement and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) Office on Women's Health (OWH) in reminding women to make their health a priority. National Women's Health Week is a weeklong health observance coordinated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Office on Women's Health. It brings together communities, businesses, government, health organizations, and other groups in an effort to promote women's health.

View a public service video in support of National Women's Health Week and the American Cancer Society Choose You women's health movement.

In recognition of National Women's Health Week, and as part of the company's national presenting sponsorship of Choose You, Quest Diagnostics is offering 10,000 free wellness screening vouchers to women at Choose You community events around the country throughout the month of May, to help women focus on and understand their health risks. In addition, at Quest Diagnostics worksites across the United States, HealthyQuest employee volunteers are leading events to raise awareness among the company's more than 40,000 employees of National Women's Health Week, the Choose You movement, and the importance of a healthy lifestyle.

"This week, we're encouraging women everywhere to schedule their recommended medical appointments and by doing so, to make a commitment to their own health and take care of themselves just as well as they take care of their families," says Kimberly Wright, Director, Mission Solutions and Tools at the American Cancer Society. "This is a very important message of the Choose You movement and of our supporters like Quest Diagnostics."

"We hope our support of National Women's Health Week will mobilize more women to see their doctors and receive their recommended health screenings," said Quest Diagnostics President and CEO Steve Rusckowski. "At Quest Diagnostics, our employees come to work each day with a passion for improving human health, and we're pleased to sponsor the American Cancer Society Choose You women's health movement."

Quest Diagnostics employee volunteers are joining the American Cancer Society in encouraging women to prioritize their health at community events around the country. The Choose You movement has issued a challenge to women: Choose play in May and help the Society inspire 100,000 acts of physical activity. To get the challenge started, a series of Choose You pop-up "play teams" have been hitting the streets of New York (May 1), Santa Monica (May 11) and Washington, D.C. (May 22), inviting passers-by to get active with nostalgic childhood toys, including the '80s famed Skip It, hula hoops, hoppity-hop balls and double Dutch jump ropes. Last Friday, at Santa Monica's Third Street Promenade, local residents, visitors, media and celebrities, including Dot Marie Jones (Coach Beiste, Fox-TV Glee), Jessica Stroup of 90210 (CW network), Josie Loren (ABC Family Make It or Break It), Genevieve Farrell (Disney's Molly: the American Girl on the Homefront), and Amy Paffrath (Host of MTV'S Jersey Shore: After Hours and Hollywood 411), played with the team and joined the growing public health movement.

Women receiving Quest Diagnostics vouchers at May Choose You events can redeem them online to schedule a free Blueprint for Wellness® screening at a Quest Diagnostics patient service center. Each screening participant will receive a personalized My 5 to Health™ report with biometrics and laboratory test results for diabetes and heart disease risk, a Metabolic Syndrome risk score, and a "tear out" summary page they can take to their doctor. The Quest Diagnostics Blueprint for Wellness health-risk assessment service is provided to health-conscious companies seeking to implement lab-based employee wellness initiatives to help identify and reduce their workers' greatest health risks. In a recent study published in the peer-reviewed online journal PLoS ONE, Quest Diagnostics found that one in three first-time participants in their employer's lab-based wellness program were unaware they were at high risk for diabetes, heart disease, and/or chronic kidney disease.

To learn more, view the Quest Diagnostics public service video in support of Choose You and National Women's Health Week.

About Quest Diagnostics

Quest Diagnostics is the world's leading provider of diagnostic testing, information and services that patients and doctors need to make better healthcare decisions. The company offers the broadest access to diagnostic testing services through its network of laboratories and patient service centers, and provides interpretive consultation through its extensive medical and scientific staff. Quest Diagnostics is a pioneer in developing innovative diagnostic tests and advanced healthcare information technology solutions that help improve patient care. The company's 42,000 employees believe so strongly in the important work of the American Cancer Society that they voted it their national charity through 2013, and have raised awareness and funds - more than $4 million - in support of the Society's mission.  Additional company information is available at QuestDiagnostics.com. Follow us at Facebook.com/QuestDiagnostics and Twitter.com/QuestDX.

About National Women's Health Week

National Women's Health Week is a weeklong health observance coordinated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Office on Women's Health. It brings together communities, businesses, government, health organizations, and other groups in an effort to promote women's health. The theme for 2012 is "It's Your Time." National Women's Health Week empowers women to make their health a top priority. It also encourages women to take the following steps to improve their physical and mental health and lower their risks of certain diseases:

• Visit a health care professional to receive regular checkups and preventive screenings.
• Get active.
• Eat healthy.
• Pay attention to mental health, including getting enough sleep and managing stress.
• Avoid unhealthy behaviors, such as smoking and not wearing a seatbelt or bicycle helmet.

Quest Diagnostics Media Contact: Barb Short, [email protected], 973-796-4276
Quest Diagnostics Investor Contact: Kathleen Valentine, 973-520-2900

SOURCE Quest Diagnostics