Shiloh
Editor, Senior Moderator
CDC Has Fixed Issue Delaying Coronavirus Testing In U.S., Health Officials Say
February 27, 202010:01 AM ET
Updated at 11:50 a.m. ET
Federal health officials say they have resolved a problem that has hindered wide testing for the new coronavirus in the United States, a crucial practice for fighting the spread of the dangerous new infection.
A problem with one ingredient in test kits that the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention distributed to labs around the country had created a frustrating bottleneck in testing, requiring most testing to occur at the CDC in Atlanta.
On Wednesday night, the CDC announced a new case of the COVID-19 disease in California that could represent the first U.S. case of the virus spreading within the general population. That diagnosis was delayed because testing wasn't done immediately.
But the CDC and the Food and Drug Administration informed state officials late Wednesday that the agencies have resolved the problem with the test kits.
"The FDA has authorized the use of those tests by using just the first and second step to provide a definitive diagnostic," Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said during a congressional hearing Thursday...
Read more: https://www.npr.org/sections/health...xes-issue-delaying-coronavirus-testing-in-u-s
February 27, 202010:01 AM ET
Updated at 11:50 a.m. ET
Federal health officials say they have resolved a problem that has hindered wide testing for the new coronavirus in the United States, a crucial practice for fighting the spread of the dangerous new infection.
A problem with one ingredient in test kits that the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention distributed to labs around the country had created a frustrating bottleneck in testing, requiring most testing to occur at the CDC in Atlanta.
On Wednesday night, the CDC announced a new case of the COVID-19 disease in California that could represent the first U.S. case of the virus spreading within the general population. That diagnosis was delayed because testing wasn't done immediately.
But the CDC and the Food and Drug Administration informed state officials late Wednesday that the agencies have resolved the problem with the test kits.
"The FDA has authorized the use of those tests by using just the first and second step to provide a definitive diagnostic," Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said during a congressional hearing Thursday...
Read more: https://www.npr.org/sections/health...xes-issue-delaying-coronavirus-testing-in-u-s