The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the body that regulates the marketing of drugs, On Tuesday authorized the first home test for Covid-19 without a prescription for sale.
By allowing a test for over-the-counter use, the FDA allows it to be sold in places such as pharmacies, where a patient can buy it, take a nasal sample, run the test, and see the results in just 20 minutesChief regulator Stephen Hahn said in a statement.
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The test is from the Australian pharmaceutical company Ellume and detects protein fragments of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus in each individual from the age of two Users using the Ellume test must download a mobile application that allows them to interpret the results and share them with the health authorities.
Ellume expects to produce about three million tests by January next year. Although it is an antigen test, a small percentage of the results may be false positives or negatives, Hahn stressed that “the fact that it can be used completely at home and that results are obtained quickly means that its role may be important in the response to the pandemic.” (Also: Bill Gates predicts which would be the worst months of the coronavirus.)
Rapid results mean your role could be important in responding to the pandemic
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Ellume’s test kicks off a month after the FDA was approved Lucira’s homemade test, albeit by prescription.
The United States is going through the worst moment of the pandemic by more than 200,000 new infections per day and about 3,000 deaths every 24 hours for weeks. The latest data from Johns Hopkins University indicates 303,292 deaths since the start of the pandemic and 16,681,178 infections, more than in any other country.
On Monday, authorities started the vaccination campaign after the FDA also approved the injection of the pharmaceutical company Pfizer last Friday.
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EFE