This undated photo provided by U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows CDC’s laboratory test kit for the new coronavirus.
CDC / AP Photo
Coronavirus test expected to be available in Pa. by end of week
“We gain time. We gain the ability to activate a response more quickly.”
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David Wenner/PennLive
CDC / AP Photo
This undated photo provided by U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows CDC’s laboratory test kit for the new coronavirus.
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What you should know
» Map: Where the virus has spread
» What we know about the outbreak
» How to prepare your home for coronavirus
» Coronavirus FAQs
(Harrisburg) — The Pennsylvania Department of Health expects to be running its own tests for the new coronavirus by Friday. But the department will continue forwarding tests to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for confirmation, said April Hutcheson, a spokeswoman for the department.
That means results will still come slower than some infectious disease specialists consider optimal.
State testing labs across the country have been without a test for the new coronavirus as a result of problems with test kits initially provided by the CDC. States been forwarding samples from people who may have the new coronavirus to a CDC lab in Atlanta and waiting up to 48 hours for results.
The CDC said it would resume providing test kits early this week.
As a result of being able to test samples at the state’s lab near Philadelphia, Hutcheson said, “We gain time. We gain the ability to activate a response more quickly.”
And with the CDC now having only to confirm positive samples rather than perform all the tests, the turnaround time for receiving results should shrink, she said.
The symptoms of the new coronavirus — fever, cough, difficulty breathing — are similar to those of the regular flu.
Some experts say it’s important for hospitals to be able to do their own tests, which could dramatically reduce the wait for results. They say that’s key to preventing spread of the coronavirus, since local health care providers could quickly take steps to isolate the sick person and begin tracing the person’s contacts to find other possible infections. A fast test would further help doctors know what treatment the patient needs.
Federal officials over the weekend also said they would grant emergency permission to hospital-based labs and commercial labs to create their own tests.
Hutcheson as of early Monday afternoon said the health department was focused on getting its own testing up and running, and didn’t know if tests would soon be available at hospitals and commercial labs in Pennsylvania.
Ted S. Warren / AP Photo
A worker at the Life Care Center in Kirkland, Wash., near Seattle, wears a mask as she leaves the building, Monday, March 2, 2020. Several of the people who have died in Washington state from the COVID-19 coronavirus were tied to the long-term care facility, where dozens of residents were sick.
Asked about the availability of hospital-based tests on Monday, a UPMC Pinnacle spokeswoman said, “As of right now UPMC is working with our partners at the state Department of Health for our testing needs.”
A spokeswoman for Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center said, “We are not currently doing any testing at [the medical center] and will defer to the DOH as to when testing will be available in Pennsylvania.”
Hutcheson said privacy laws prevented her from discussing how many samples of possible coronavirus infections Pennsylvania has forwarded to the CDC. She stressed that Pennsylvania as of early Monday afternoon had no confirmed cases.
As soon as there is a confirmed case in Pennsylvania, the public will be notified, she said.
Nationally, there were about 80 coronavirus cases in the United States and six deaths as of Monday afternoon.
Pennsylvania health officials believe it’s only a matter of time before people in Pennsylvania get the coronavirus and spread it to others. Hutcheson noted it has now been found in several states close to Pennsylvania, including New York.
“We are prepared for community spread,” she said. “No one has a crystal ball. We wish we did … There is no way to forecast when this virus will hit. But we can begin thinking about what our reaction will be and that’s what we’re doing right now.”
PennLive and The Patriot-News are partners with PA Post.
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