CONCORD — A new COVID-19 test that provides results in 15 minutes is a “game changer” that will allow people with symptoms of coronavirus to quickly determine if they have the disease, Gov. Chris Sununu said at a news conference Thursday.
“We don’t want families to have to keep their kids out of school for weeks at a time,” he said. “If the test comes back negative, they can be back on track quicker.”
The state will distribute these Abbott BinaxNOW Rapid-Antigen tests to 20 community testing sites, including Lakes Region General Hospital, as well as National Guard drive-through testing locations in Londonderry and Concord.
People who think they have symptoms of the disease should contact their doctor and ask about receiving a test.
A total of 25,000 of these tests will be made available in the state weekly.
“The BINAX test will allow the state to significantly ramp up testing in a targeted fashion — specifically for students and vulnerable populations,” Sununu said.
The test allows the rapid result after a nasal swab from a patient is applied to a card.
“As more and more residents return to school, work and other communal settings, residents experiencing symptoms will have greater access to rapid results to quickly determine whether they have COVID-19,” said Lori Shibinette, commissioner of the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services.
“Community transmission of the new coronavirus continues to occur throughout the state and we do not want symptomatic people going to a school or place of work to get a test and potentially exposing others.”
Frank Edelblut, commissioner of the New Hampshire Department of Education, said the new test will be helpful.
“New Hampshire schools have worked hard to get students back to school safely,” he said. “Increased rapid testing will greatly benefit these ongoing efforts, as well as assist schools responding to cases in their communities.”
The tests should be available in the next couple weeks.
On the Web:
NH Covid-19 testing: tinyurl.com/y5bnur3d
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