WALTHAM, MASS. (WHDH) - A company in Waltham is waiting for FDA approval on a rapid result test it developed for the coronavirus.
Perkin Elmer hopes its test that can detect COVID-19 in just 15 minutes is used to get students back into school and employees back to work.
“Some folks are not going to have access to the vaccine for some time, whether you’re underage or you’ve gotten a certain condition. But commerce and education and everyday life has to continue, and we think this test is going to play a big role,” said Masoud Toloue, the company’s senior vice president of diagnostics.
The global corporation said the test requires a nasal swab. Once that is placed into a buffer a positive or negative result should be given in about 15 minutes.
The test is accurate 97 percent or more of the time, according to the company. The accuracy rate is a breakthrough for a rapid test.
Toloue hopes the test is used at health care centers, airports, and train stations. A decision from the FDA is expected in the next two weeks.
“It’s going to be a new normal. We’re obviously going to have to open up at some point and we think testing, it’s that passport,” Toloue said.
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