Congress

The Energy and Commerce Committee chairman asked the agency to show Congress all of the state and local plans for COVID-19 testing by July 6.

The experts said that antibody testing cannot indicate an individual's immunity or help with return-to-work schemes but have use for public health agencies.

The lawmakers requested the secretary to direct money from the Public Health and Social Services Emergency Fund to support clinical labs.

The bills would award grants to help public health laboratories purchase high-throughput instruments and to help support diagnostic testing outside of the lab setting.

The total relief package totals $484 billion, including $11 billion for states, localities, territories, tribes, and employers to scale up SARS-CoV-2 testing.

The "roadmap" to getting the economy rolling again calls for the rapid scaling up of testing and a pipeline to develop tests, among other things.

Two US representatives have requested details about the accuracy of the various SARS-CoV-2 diagnostics being used in response to the ongoing pandemic.

If the bill passes in its current form, PAMA reporting would be delayed until January 2022 and rate cuts scheduled for 2021 would be put off to 2022.

ACLA President Julie Khani emphasized that commercial labs have been performing SARS-CoV-2 testing without confirmation of payment.