August 27, 2020 – Abbott (Abbott Park, IL) has received Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its BinaxNOW COVID-19 Ag Card rapid test for detection of COVID-19 infection.
The company says it will sell this test for $5.
Currently, AdvaMed (The Advanced Medical Technology Association) estimates that test manufacturers are shipping about 1 million tests per day. Abbott will ship tens of millions of tests in September, ramping to 50 million tests a month at the beginning of October.
The company says the test is highly portable (about the size of a credit card) and provides results in 15 minutes. BinaxNOW uses Abbott lateral flow technology, making it a reliable and familiar format for frequent mass testing through the healthcare provider.
Abbott will also launch NAVICA, a complementary mobile app for iPhone and Android devices.
“The NAVICA app is optional and an easy-to-use tool that allows people to store, access and display their results with organizations that accept the results so people can move about with greater confidence,” says Abbott.
This free app will allow people who test negative to display a temporary digital health pass that is renewed each time a person is tested through their healthcare provider together with the date of the test result. Organizations will be able to view and verify the information on a mobile device to facilitate entry into facilities along with hand-washing, social distancing, enhanced cleaning and mask-wearing.
The app is supported by Apple and Android digital wallets and will be available from public app stores in the U.S.
