On Friday April 18th, Governor Roy Cooper announced the creation of a working group charged with increasing access to COVID19 testing in our state. The group consists of a small team of experts from the Academic and private testing facilities in North Carolina. Duke is being represented by Michael Datto, MD PhD, Medical Director and Associate Vice President for Duke Health System Clinical Laboratories, who will serve as a co-chair for this group, leading the scientific study council. Over the coming days, the group will develop a coordinated action plan to (1) Increase testing throughput and capacity (including serology), (2) Expand testing sites and diversity of testing options, (3)Address risks around testing supplies and PPE availability, and (4) Increase transparency around current testing capabilities of laboratory, clinical, and retail partners. Ensuring access to testing is a critical component of our response to this pandemic and will ultimately allow us to provide the best care for our patients and the safest environments for us to return to work.
More about this story can be found on the Chapelboro website at https://chapelboro.com/news/state-government/state-health-officials-announce-testing-workgroup-including-unc-duke-reps.