November 11, 2020 – BD (Becton, Dickinson and Company) (Franklin Lakes, NJ) announced its rapid, point-of-care, SARS-CoV-2 antigen test for use on the BD Veritor Plus System was authorized for use by Health Canada under Interim Order.
This test is designed to be performed at the point-of-care, reducing the burden on testing laboratories. The test uses a mid-nasal swab to collect patient samples, which is less invasive for the patient than nasopharyngeal sample collection.
The new test delivers results in approximately 15 minutes on a portable instrument, which the company says is a critical improvement in turnaround time for COVID-19 diagnostics, because it provides real-time results and enables decision-making while the patient is still onsite.
The authorization has been accompanied by an order from the Canadian government for 7.6 million tests through March 2021 to support Canada’s planning for an advanced COVID-19 testing strategy.
“The Government of Canada continues to work diligently to provide Canadians with access to effective and efficient COVID-19 testing solutions,” said Minister of Public Services and Procurement Anita Anand. “This new agreement with BD is critical to assisting the provinces and territories in their respective efforts to reduce the spread of the virus. We will continue to support Canadians through the COVID-19 pandemic.”
The test, which received Health Canada authorization in early October, has been available in the U.S. since July through an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
The test uses the BD Veritor Plus System, which is already in use in Canada to detect Influenza A+B, Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV), and Group A Strep. BD has also been supporting SARS-CoV-2 molecular testing (RT-PCR) in Canadian labs on the BD MAX System.