BUFFALO, N.Y. — Quest Diagnostics announced Tuesday that it has started conducting antibody testing for coronavirus.
Governor Andrew Cuomo says testing New Yorkers for COVID-19 antibodies will give the state a more accurate idea regarding what percentage of the population actually had coronavirus. The governor says that antibody testing is one of the bigger steps that needs to be taken in order to reopen the economy.
"As the FDA has indicated, antibody testing has the potential to help healthcare professionals identify people who have been exposed to COVID-19 and who have developed an immune response," said Jay G. Wohlgemuth, M.D., senior vice president and chief medical officer for Quest Diagnostics. "In addition, FDA has indicated that antibody testing can help identify those who could contribute a part of their blood, called convalescent plasma, which may provide an avenue for possible treatment for those who are seriously ill from the coronavirus."
This announcement comes after Quest gave an update about its ability to test for COVID-19 on Monday, saying its diagnostic testing capacity is outpacing demand. Quest reports that it has performed more than 940,000 COVID-19 diagnostic tests thus far and says it will be able to start testing up to 350,000 people a week.
Quest says it has not experienced a testing backlog for nearly a week and anticipates being able to test 50,000 people per day.