In response to inquiries from Indianz.Com, the Indian Health Service issued the following statement on April 7, 2020, about the availability of rapid testing for the coronavirus in Indian Country:
“The Indian Health Service has been given priority access to rapid point-of-care COVID-19 test systems as part of White House efforts to expand access to testing in rural communities. The IHS expects to receive ID NOW COVID-19 rapid point-of-care test systems on Wednesday and distribute them to health care facilities by Thursday, with testing expected to begin this week. This test allows for medical diagnostic testing at the time and place of patient care, provides COVID-19 results in under 13 minutes and expands the capacity for coronavirus testing for individuals exhibiting symptoms as well as for healthcare professionals and the first responder community.
The Indian Health Service headquarters is working closely with IHS area offices to distribute testing equipment and supplies where they will have the most impact. The Indian health system has been allocated 250 analyzers and supplies for more than 9,000 individual tests. IHS is already working diligently to restock testing supplies for these analyzers.”
Indian Health Service: https://www.ihs.gov
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