COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio will be receiving its first batch of rapid COVID-19 test that can be done at home and return results in 15 minutes, according to Gov. Mike DeWine.
The tests are part of President Donald Trump's administration's distribution of 150 million Abbott rapid point-of-care tests meant to focus on the most vulnerable communities, including nursing homes, assisted living facilities, home health and hospice care agencies, and historically Black colleges and tribal nation colleges.
The tests, called the BinaxNOW COVID-19 Ag Card, are portable and about the size of a credit card.
BinaxNOW COVID-19 Ag Card “demonstrated sensitivity of 97.1% (positive percent agreement) and specificity of 98.5% (negative percent agreement) in patients suspected of COVID-19 by their healthcare provider within the first seven days of symptom onset,” according to Abbott.
DeWine said that the tests will be used to fill in gaps at nursing homes and said they could be used to get kids back in school quicker and could be used at the higher education level as well.
The governor described the test as resembling a pregnancy test in the sense that they do not require a lab, they can be read quickly and they are relatively cheap.
The first round of tests being shipped to the state are free as part of the White House’s deal, but once those tests are depleted, the state will be able to buy more for about $5 a test.
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