The US government has given pharmacies authority to carry out tests for the coronavirus. They have also been authorised to carry out tests on newly developed antibody that detect whether a person who has recovered from illness had COVID-19.
As announced by the Health secretary, Alex Azar, all tests approved by regulators could be carried out by pharmacies as the country seeks to ramp up its testing efforts.
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“The Trump Administration is pleased to give pharmacists the chance to play a bigger role in the COVID-19 response, alongside all of America’s heroic healthcare workers,” he said.
A nasal swab test can detect whether a person currently has the coronavirus.
After they have recovered, a test that looks at whether their body developed antibodies that fought off the virus and can be used — even if the person never showed symptoms.
There are different kinds of antibody tests and they can’t yet tell whether a person has sufficient antibodies to be protected against future infection.
Juliet Ekwebelam
