U.S. Company Announces a Major Breakthrough in Coronavirus Testing; Coronavirus Slowdown in Seattle Suggests Restrictions Are Working
By The Blaze. The Food and Drug Administration has issued an Emergency Use Authorization to medical device giant Abbott Labs on Friday for a five-minute coronavirus test that could be arriving to the nation’s urgent care clinics as early as next week.
In a press release, Abbott Labs characterized the device as “the fastest available molecular point-of-care test for the detection of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).” The Illinois-based manufacturer also said it expects the equipment to deliver up to 50,000 tests per day and will be ramping up manufacturing in the coming weeks, according to USA Today.
“I am pleased that the FDA authorized Abbott’s point-of-care test yesterday. This is big news and will help get more of these tests out in the field rapidly,” FDA Commissioner Steve Hahn said in a statement. “We know how important it is to get point-of-care tests out in the field quickly. These tests that can give results quickly can be a game changer in diagnosing COVID-19.” . . .
The development was hailed as a “game changer” by former FDA commissioner Scott Gottlieb who said it is “very likely” there will be additional approvals for point-of-care diagnostics, “extending testing to doctor offices across the U.S.” (Read more from “U.S. Company Announces a Major Breakthrough in Coronavirus Testing” HERE)
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Coronavirus Slowdown in Seattle Suggests Restrictions Are Working
By The New York Times. The Seattle area, home of the first known coronavirus case in the United States and the place where the virus claimed 37 of its first 50 victims, is now seeing evidence that strict containment strategies, imposed in the earliest days of the outbreak, are beginning to pay off — at least for now.
Deaths are not rising as fast as they are in other states. Dramatic declines in street traffic show that people are staying home. Hospitals have so far not been overwhelmed. And preliminary statistical models provided to public officials in Washington State suggest that the spread of the virus has slowed in the Seattle area in recent days. . .
The researchers who are preparing the latest projections, led by the Institute for Disease Modeling, a private research group in Bellevue, Wash., have been watching a variety of data points since the onset of the outbreak. They include tens of thousands of coronavirus test results, deaths, and mobility information — including traffic patterns and the movements of anonymous Facebook users — to estimate the rate at which coronavirus patients are spreading the disease to others. (Read more from “Coronavirus Slowdown in Seattle Suggests Restrictions Are Working” HERE)
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