Coronavirus

FDA Approves New Coronavirus Test That May Provide 'Rapid' Results

The "rapid" COVID-19 test may be able to provide results within five minutes.

FDA Approves New Coronavirus Test That May Provide 'Rapid' Results
Rick Bowmer / AP
SMS

The FDA approved a "rapid" coronavirus test Friday that may be able to provide results within five minutes.

In a statement after the approval, healthcare company Abbott said its ID NOW COVID-19 test can provide "positive results in as little as five minutes and negative results in 13 minutes."

Abbott President Robert B. Ford said: "With rapid testing on ID NOW, healthcare providers can perform molecular point-of-care testing outside the traditional four walls of a hospital in outbreak hotspots."

The FDA approved the test via "emergency use authorization." It was one of many diagnostic measures that received accelerated review in hopes of combating the coronavirus pandemic, according to Forbes.

Abbott will make the tests available next week and "expects to produce about 5 million tests per month."