Sunnyvale, Calif.-based biotechnology company Cepheid has received approval from the Food and Drug Administration for the first rapid test for the novel coronavirus that returns results in around 45 minutes and does not require lab processing.
Cepheid Chief Medical Officer David Persing says the test should primarily be used in emergency rooms and hospitals, not in doctors’ offices.. Cepheid is a unit of Danaher, a Washington, D.C.-based medical conglomerate.
The Cepheid test doesn’t require a nasal swab, a medicinal necessity in short supply, and added that a “nasal aspirate” or nasal wash specimens. Machines that run the new Cepheid tests are already in some healthcare facilities, however, there are only around 5,000 Cepheid systems in use in the U.S.
