UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
                   WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549
                              
                          FORM 8-K
                              
                       CURRENT REPORT

Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

                      DECEMBER 28, 1998
                       ---------------
              (Date of earliest event reported)


         LABORATORY CORPORATION OF AMERICA HOLDINGS
         ------------------------------------------
   (Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)


   DELAWARE              1-11353             13-3757370
   --------              -------             ----------
(State or other         (Commission         (IRS Employer
jurisdiction of         File Number)         Identification
incorporation)                               Number)


   358 SOUTH MAIN STREET, BURLINGTON, NORTH CAROLINA 27215
   -------------------------------------------------------
          (Address of principal executive offices)
                              
                        336-229-1127
                        ------------
    (Registrant's telephone number, including area code)
                              


                              
                              
ITEM 5. OTHER EVENTS

On December 28, 1998, the Company issued a press release
announcing that it has been awarded a contract by the Office
of the Attorney General in Texas to perform genetic
paternity testing services.  Additionally, the Company has
been awarded a contract to provide similar testing for the
State Child Support Enforcement Agency in North Carolina.
It has also expanded its caseload in Illinois and New Jersey
by obtaining the exclusive rights to perform parentage
testing in Cook County for the Illinois Child Support
Enforcement Division and has been designated the preferred
provider of paternity testing services for the state of New
Jersey.

ITEM 7. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS, PRO FORMA FINANCIAL
        INFORMATION AND EXHIBITS

 (c)  Exhibit
      20  Press release of the Company dated
          December 28, 1998.




                         SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities and Exchange
Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to
be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly
authorized.

          LABORATORY CORPORATION OF AMERICA HOLDINGS
          ------------------------------------------
                         (Registrant)

               By:/s/ BRADFORD T. SMITH
                  ------------------------------
                      Bradford T. Smith
                      Executive Vice President,
                      General Counsel, Secretary
                      and Compliance Officer



Date: January 21, 1999






Laboratory Corporation of America-Registered Trademark-Holdings
358 South Main Street
Burlington, NC   27215
Telephone:  336-584-5171

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: 336-584-5171                    Shareholder Direct:   800-LAB-0401   
- -------                                  ------------------   
         Media - Cynthia Jay, Ext. 6652                        www.labcorp.com
         Investors - Pamela Sherry, Ext. 4855
                                     
     LABCORP-REGISTERED TRADEMARK-EXPANDS LEADERSHIP POSITION IN GENETIC
                             PATERNITY TESTING

     Burlington, NC, December 28, 1998 - Laboratory Corporation of America-
registered trademark-Holdings (LabCorp-registered trademark-) (NYSE: LH) has
recently been awarded a contract by the Office of the Attorney General in 
Texas to perform genetic paternity testing services.  Houston, Dallas/Ft. 
Worth and San Antonio, the three largest metropolitan areas in the state, are 
included in the contract.  The company is also the only laboratory performing
paternity testing for Texas interstate casework.  Additionally, LabCorp has 
been awarded a contract to provide similar testing for the State Child 
Support Enforcement Agency in North Carolina.  It has also expanded its 
caseload in Illinois and New Jersey by obtaining the exclusive rights to 
perform parentage testing in Cook County for the Illinois Child Support 
Enforcement Division and has been designated the preferred provider of 
paternity testing services for the state of New Jersey.
    With approximately 900 company-owned patient service centers
comprising LabCorp's service network throughout the United States, the
company is unique in its ability to respond to the growing need for
parentage evaluation.  "As a result of these successes, in 1999 we fully
expect to further strengthen our leadership position in paternity testing
in the nation," said Dr. Ellen Moscovitz, vice president and general
manager of identity and paternity business at LabCorp.   "Another thing
that has made our position stronger in this area is our ability to do
bloodless specimen collection," explained Dr. Moscovitz.  "We currently
collect the majority of all paternity specimens with buccal swabs inside
the mouth, which eliminates the inconvenience associated with drawing
blood, as well as preventing discomfort, which is invaluable when working
with children."
     Laboratory Corporation of America-Registered Trademark-Holdings 
(LabCorp-Registered Trademark-) is a national clinical laboratory with annual
revenues of $1.5 billion in 1997.  With more than 18,000 employees and over 
200,000 clients nationwide, the company offers more than 1,700 clinical 
tests, ranging from simple blood analyses to more sophisticated technologies.
In addition to the major testing sites, the Center for Molecular Biology and 
Pathology, LabCorp's leading edge esoteric testing facility located in 
Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, develops applications for Polymerase 
Chain Reaction (PCR) technology, a revolutionary technique used to produce some
of the most sensitive diagnostic tests ever developed.  LabCorp's clients 
include physicians, state and federal governments, managed care organizations,
hospitals, clinics, long-term care facilities, companies, and other
clinical laboratories.
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