NEW HAVEN, Conn. (WTNH) — The Yale School of Public Health’s saliva-based coronavirus test has been authorized for emergency use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
The new test is now available for emergency use in diagnostic laboratories nationwide, and will possibly be available for international use in the coming weeks, according to Yale.
Yale says the SalivaDirect test is less expensive and less invasive than the nasal swab test and has produced results similar to the nasal swab test. Researchers expect that labs will charge around $10 per sample.
Yale also relies on multiple vendors for reagents and instruments to gain flexibility in any possible supply chain issues.
Researchers see this test as a ‘game-changer’ in COVID-19 diagnostics, and, according to Yale postdoctoral fellow, Chantal Vogels, a “huge step forward to making testing more accessible.”
Yale is partnering with The Jackson Laboratory for Genomic Medicine in Farmington to explore how to implement the saliva-based test for a broader audience.
Right now, this test is primarily used to test asymptomatic people.
The SalivaDirect test is currently being tested on players and staff from the National Basketball Association while the playing season continues in Orlando.
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