Sonora Quest Laboratories offering coronavirus antibody testing

PHOENIX — Sonora Quest Laboratories is ramping up its fight against the spread of coronavirus in the state.

The diagnostic laboratory testing company announced Friday it will begin offering antibody testing for COVID-19 using blood specimens.

With this new testing, Sonora Quest can provide health care providers in Arizona both the COVID-19 antibody test as well as the molecular diagnostic testing that has been offered since March.

“Antibody testing can be a game-changer in our fight against COVID-19,” Governor Doug Ducey said the press release.

“Sonora Quest has continually innovated to make increased testing available to Arizonans. This is another welcome expansion that will help provide certainty as Arizona looks to economic recovery at the appropriate time.”

Physicians are now able to prescribe, collect and route COVID-19 antibody testing specimens to Sonora Quest for testing.

Patients can also schedule an appointment at one of the numerous Sonora Quest patient service centers that have the proper resources for COVID-19 antibody testing collection. Patients must be without symptoms and fever for at least 10 days to have the most reliable test results and wear a face mask, the company said in the release.

According to Sonora Quest, the antibody testing will be performed at its core laboratory in Tempe. The company expects 1,000 to 3,000 tests per day to start, before scaling up testing capacity. Test results come back in one to four days from specimen collection.

Sonora Quest also plans to begin offering antibody testing through My Lab ReQuestTM solution, where consumers can receive testing without a provider’s order or insurance in Arizona, the release said.

“As the FDA has indicated, antibody testing has the potential to help health care professionals identify people who have been exposed to COVID-19 and may have developed an immune response,” Scientific Medical Director of Infectious Diseases Division for Sonora Quest Brian Mochon said in the release.

“In addition, the FDA has indicated that antibody testing can help identify those who could contribute a part of their blood, called convalescent plasma, which may provide an avenue for possible treatment for those who are seriously ill from COVID-19.”

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