Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
FDA Gives Go-Ahead For Fluidigm's COVID-19 'Spit Test'
AP: Washington University Spit Test Approved By FDA For Virus
A Washington University saliva test for the coronavirus has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration, Missouri Gov. Mike Parson announced Wednesday. The St. Louis-area university worked with biotechnology company Fluidigm to develop the test, which allows people to collect their own testing samples by spitting into small tubes. Test results are available in a few hours. (Ballentine, 8/26)
Detroit Free Press: Oakland County Offers Free COVID-19 Tests For School-Age Kids
As children prepare to go back to classrooms in the midst of a pandemic, one metro Detroit county is offering free COVID-19 testing to school-age kids. Oakland County announced Wednesday that it will expand its free drive-thru COVID-19 testing to include kids ages 4-17 beginning Aug. 31. The children must have symptoms to qualify, and must be residents of Oakland County or attend school in the county. (Shamus, 8/27)
In testing news from California —
The Hill: California Signs Deal To Double Coronavirus Testing Capacity, Provide Cheaper And Faster Tests
California has inked a deal with Massachusetts-based diagnostics company PerkinElmer worth about $1.4 million to provide cheaper coronavirus tests that will allow the state to eventually more than double its overall testing capacity to about 250,000 people per day. Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) discussed the contract during a press briefing Wednesday, The Associated Press reports. The governor confirmed that California currently averages around 100,000 tests daily, and the state absorbs the $100 cost per test. Results tend to take about five to seven business days to come back. (Kelley, 8/26)
San Francisco Chronicle: Counter To ‘Misdirected’ CDC Guidance, Bay Area Experts Say Exposed People Without COVID-19 Symptoms Should Still Get Tested
Contrary to recent guidelines put forth by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Bay Area health experts are encouraging people with possible coronavirus exposure to still seek testing, even if they do not have any symptoms. Because a large portion of people with COVID-19 are asymptomatic, or pre-symptomatic, skipping testing for these people would be counterproductive to efforts to contain the virus, local health officials and epidemiologists said. (Ho, 8/26)
