FDA clears saliva test for Covid-19, opening door to wider testing

Over the weekend, the FDA authorized the emergency use of a saliva test for Covid-19. Developed by researchers at the Yale School of Public Health, the test offers a less-invasive alternative to the current standard of nasal swabs for Covid-19 testing, while still being highly sensitive. The test doesn't rely on the kinds of chemical reagents that have led to shortages for other tests and samples can be processed in less than three hours. Yale plans to make the protocol behind the new test available to other labs across the country and is suggesting that the test be offered at $10 per sample, which would also make it relatively inexpensive. Making the test more widely available could be a game changer, as testing delays have plagued the U.S. response to the Covid-19 pandemic. “Rarely am I this enthusiastic,” former CMS administrator Andy Slavitt tweeted about the test. “They are turning testing from a bespoke suit to a low-cost commodity.”