For example, a person who tests positive while traveling might not have the financial means to quarantine him or herself in a strange city for 14 days, she said. Though tests can provide valuable information for some travelers, others might not be able to act upon the results, said Mercedes Carnethon, vice chair of preventive medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. Questions also have been raised about the value of testing at airports. “No test detects the virus immediately after the person becomes infected.” “It’s helpful to keep in mind that tests discover the presence of coronavirus once there’s enough viral material in a person to be able to detect it,” Abbott spokeswoman Darcy Ross said in an email. That means someone who catches COVID-19 on an airplane probably won’t test positive for the illness if he or she takes a test right after landing. Food and Drug Administration warned the test could produce false negatives, though Abbott has criticized a study supporting that as “rife with limitations.”Īlso, If a person is tested too early in the course of the illness, tests won’t be able to detect COVID-19. North suburban-based Abbott says its ID NOW test correctly detects positive results 95% of the time and correctly detects negative ones 98% of the time within seven days of experiencing symptoms. People who receive negative test results should continue to protect themselves and others, such as by wearing masks, social distancing and washing their hands, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Įxperts also caution that testing has its limitations. Health experts and others caution that tests are just one tool for preventing the spread of COVID-19. Some of the attendees were not wearing masks or social distancing. Multiple media outlets reported that attendees were given an Abbott test before the event. President Donald Trump and a number of others who attended an event at the White House became ill with COVID-19 after the gathering. The company’s announcement comes as questions have surfaced about the efficacy of testing as a way to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The company is focusing on testing people who have symptoms or known exposures to COVID-19, but anyone can be tested, he said.
The tests would be voluntary for travelers, airport and airline employees. XpresCheck hopes to offer the tests at O’Hare by the holiday travel season, Satzman said. “Like 9/11 changed safety protocol forever in our airports, we think COVID-19 will as well,” he said. “The goal is to create a safer travel environment, work environment and reduce risks, but also restore passenger confidence as the airlines are returning, and airports are trying to return back to normal,” said Doug Satzman, XpresSpa and XpresCheck CEO.
XpresCheck, a subsidiary of XpresSpa Group, is in talks with the City of Chicago to potentially offer the tests at O’Hare as well. The Abbott ID NOW tests deliver results in 13 minutes or less. XpresCheck plans to begin offering COVID-19 tests developed by Abbott Laboratories at JFK and Newark Liberty international airports Wednesday.
CHICAGO - Rapid COVID-19 tests soon might be available to passengers and employees at O’Hare International Airport, from a company that plans to offer the tests at other major airports starting Wednesday.
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