Share
WASHINGTON — U.S. health regulators on Tuesday OK’d the first coronavirus test that allows people to collect their own sample at home, a new approach that could help expand testing options in most states.
The test from LabCorp will initially only be available to health care workers and first responders under a doctor’s orders. The sample will still have to be shipped for processing back to LabCorp, which operates diagnostic labs throughout the U.S.
Allowing people to self-swab at home would help reduce infection risks for front-line health care workers and help conserve protective gear.
For the home test, people are initially screened with an online questionnaire. If authorized by a physician, LabCorp will ship a testing kit to their home. The kit includes cotton swabs, a collection tube, an insulated pouch and box to ship the specimen back to LabCorp. To take a sample, a cotton swab is swirled in each nostril. The test results are posted online to a secure company website.
[covid-19-tracker]More Recently, the FDA Has Endorsed Self-Swab Method
The company said it will make the test available in the coming weeks. Each kit will cost $119. The kits will not be available in Maryland, New Jersey, New York, and Rhode Island. Those states have laws prohibiting testing with at-home kits.
Initially, the Food and Drug Administration required health care workers wearing masks, gloves and other protective gear to collect all samples from potential coronavirus patients, usually by sticking a long swab down the nose or throat.
More recently, the FDA has endorsed the self-swab method. LabCorp’s test is the first that allows it to be done at home without supervision.
FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn said in a statement the agency authorized the self-swab test based on data showing it is “as safe and accurate as sample collection at a doctor’s office, hospital or other testing site.”
RELATED TOPICS:
Oil Dips Ahead of Expected OPEC+ Output Increase
4 hours ago
613 Killed at Gaza Aid Distribution Sites, Near Humanitarian Covoys, Says UN
5 hours ago
Fresno County Authorities Investigating Suspicious Death of Transient Man
5 hours ago
Israeli Military Kills 20 in Gaza as Trump Awaits Hamas Reply to Truce Proposal
5 hours ago
Valley Crime Stoppers’ Most Wanted Person of the Day: Rachelle Maria Blanco
5 hours ago
Russia Pounds Kyiv With Largest Drone Attack, Hours After Trump-Putin Call
5 hours ago
Markets’ 90-Day Tariff Pause Rollercoaster Nears an Uncertain End
5 hours ago
Trump to Sign Tax-Cut and Spending Bill in July 4 Ceremony
4 hours ago
Categories

Trump to Sign Tax-Cut and Spending Bill in July 4 Ceremony

Clovis, Sanger, Madera, and Bass Lake Will Light the Sky With Fireworks Shows Tonight

Oil Dips Ahead of Expected OPEC+ Output Increase

613 Killed at Gaza Aid Distribution Sites, Near Humanitarian Covoys, Says UN

Fresno County Authorities Investigating Suspicious Death of Transient Man

Israeli Military Kills 20 in Gaza as Trump Awaits Hamas Reply to Truce Proposal
