SALEM, Ore. – The federal government is sending over a million COVID-19 test kits to Oregon.
On October 26, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said the agency is giving 1,270,000 Abbot BinaxNOW COVID-19 tests to the State of Oregon. The antigen tests, which require nasal swabs, can identify coronavirus infections in less than 15 minutes, HHS said.
The tests will reportedly be distributed at the discretion of Governor Kate Brown to support K-12 students, teachers, nursing home patients and staff, higher education, critical infrastructure, first responders, and other priorities as she sees fit.
HHS said to date, over 398,000 BinaxNOW tests have been shipped to Oregon.
“To facilitate the continued re-opening of Oregon schools, businesses and economy, the Trump Administration has prioritized scaling up the state’s point of care testing capacity by making this $760 million national investment in BinaxNOW tests,” said Assistant Secretary for Health Admiral Brett Giroir, MD. “Distributing these rapid tests directly to states is consistent with the Trump Administration’s successful, ongoing approach of testing the right person, with the right test at the right time, is working and the effort will continue until the pandemic is under control.”
For the latest updates about Oregon’s COVID-19 response, visit https://govstatus.egov.com/OR-OHA-COVID-19
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