New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and the city’s health commissioner Oxiris Barbot issued a joint statement on Feb. 29 saying that the city will be able to test samples of the novel coronavirus virus going forward.
“Today, the FDA [Food and Drug Adminstration] approved our application to develop our own test for the coronavirus,” de Blasio said.
The mayor added that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has sent new testing kits, meaning that New York City will be able to confirm results from testing “in a matter of hours, not days” within the coming week.
Barbot stated: “Having tests available will significantly reduce the amount of time we have to wait to know whether someone has the virus that causes COVID-19.”
She added that it was the “strong partnership” with the New York State health laboratory that made the new testing possible.
“Under this policy, we expect certain laboratories who develop validated tests for coronavirus would begin using them right away prior to FDA review,” said Jeff Shuren, director of the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health.
FDA Commissioner Stephen M. Hahn said the policy strikes the “right balance” in response to the public health emergency.
“We will continue to help to ensure sound science prior to clinical testing and follow-up with the critical independent review from the FDA, while quickly expanding testing capabilities in the U.S.,” Hahn said.
“This approval will expedite wait time and improve New York’s ability to more effectively manage the Coronavirus situation as it unfolds,” Cuomo said.
There are at least 70 known cases of coronavirus in the United States with one fatality. There are none detected in the state of New York so far.
Of the eight people tested, 7 are residents of New York City.