05/12/2020: Lab Advisory: CDC Posts Updated Point-of-Care Testing Biosafety Guidelines for COVID-19
Audience: Clinical Laboratory Professionals
Level: Laboratory Advisory
CDC Posts Updated Point-of-Care Testing Biosafety Guidelines for COVID-19
CDC recently updated the Interim Laboratory Biosafety Guidelines for Handling and Processing Specimens Associated with Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) to provide additional information about point-of-care (POC) testing for SARS-CoV-2. This update includes guidance for a variety of topics:
- Use of instruments in a location associated with a current CLIA certificate
- Site- and activity-specific risk assessment
- Proper training for staff
- Adherence to Standard Precautions when handling clinical specimens
- Decontamination of the POC instruments
Online resources:
- Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA)
- Clinical Laboratory COVID-19 Response Weekly Calls
- CDC’s Laboratory Outreach Communication System (LOCS)
- COVID-19 Information for Laboratories
- CDC COVID-19 website
- Register for CDC Health Alert Network (HAN) notifications, including updates about COVID-19. Enter your email address, search for HAN, and sign up
Laboratory Outreach Communication System | Division of Laboratory Systems (DLS)
Center for Surveillance, Epidemiology, and Laboratory Services (CSELS)
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)