States may also provide information on certification and other testing details. The CDC has a CLIA Laboratory Search Tool to look up a lab by name to check its certification. facilities or sites that test human specimens to assess health or to diagnose, prevent, or treat disease. Under CLIA, federal standards apply to all U.S. Legitimate labs are certified under CLIA - the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments of 1988. In Tucson, AZ, at Paradigm Site Services, which contracts with local governments, businesses, and others to provide testing, 4,000 tests a day are done, compared to a daily tally of 1,000 in early November, says Steven Kelly, CEO.īeyond volume, there are other barriers that thwart the intended turnaround time. Garner, PhD, director of clinical microbiology for the UCLA Health System. 21, when their total was 64.7 million.Īt the UCLA Clinical Microbiology Lab, more than 2,000 COVID tests are processed daily now, compared to 700 or 800 a month ago, says Omai B. That was an increase of about 3 million since Dec. patient locations, had logged 67.6 million COVID tests since they launched the service in 2020. 12, Quest Diagnostics, a clinical laboratory with more than 2,000 U.S. reached nearly 2 million a day, an increase of 43% over a 14-day period.īy Jan. 11, the average for COVID-19 tests in the U.S.
National statistics as well as daily tallies from individual labs reflect the boom in test requests. The many steps along the way, as well as staffing and other issues, including outbreaks of COVID-19 among lab staff, can delay the turnaround time for results. The journey of the nasal swab - from the collection point to the test results arriving by text or email - is more involved and complicated than most people realize, Milner and other experts say. "You'd be surprised by what the time delays are," says Dan Milner, MD, chief medical officer for the American Society for Clinical Pathology, an organization for lab professionals and pathologists. The increased volume is a major reason, of course, but not the only one.
Promised turnaround times of 24 to 48 hours are stretching to several days, as people wonder if they should isolate or carry on with their regular schedule.
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