IDEXX gets OK for human coronavirus test, and Maine is buying the test kits
Two weeks after announcing its development of a test to detect COVID-19 in people, animal diagnostics company IDEXX Laboratories Inc. (Nasdaq: IDXX) on Thursday said the product has received emergency use authorization from the federal Food and Drug Administration.
Made by a Georgia subsidiary of the Westbrook-based company, the test uses molecular diagnostic technology to provide results in 2.5 to 3 hours, according to a news release.
Gov. Janet Mills said Thursday that the state is purchasing enough of the new diagnostic kits to run at least 5,000 tests per week for the foreseeable future.
“This changes everything,” she said in a separate news release. “Acquiring this testing capacity is a major breakthrough for all the people of Maine.
"We have worked closely with IDEXX over the last month to position the state to benefit from this new and exciting product. Now we are poised to more than triple the state’s testing capacity, remove testing barriers for health care providers, and make sure that anyone who needs a test can get one."
The IDEXX subsidiary, OPTI Medical Systems, had previously validated the test at the Institut Pasteur of France. The test draws on the parent company’s expertise in developing and manufacturing similar diagnostics for livestock, IDEXX said in April.
“This advancement is a true reflection of our talented global team coming together and leveraging innovation across our organization to bring a diagnostic solution to support COVID-19 testing during this unprecedented pandemic,” said IDEXX President and CEO Jay Mazelsky.
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