COVID-19 Testing Update
Sept. 1, 2020
Thank you for your work in helping to keep Wisconsin safe! Together, as local health and tribal health department leaders, health care systems and providers, healthcare emergency readiness coalition coordinators, and emergency managers, you are the front-lines of coordinating testing throughout the state.
Things to Know This Week
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DHS continues to recommend testing for individuals with recent close contact with COVID-19. See COVID-19 Health Alert #15 for more details.
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Attention Local & Tribal Health Departments: The deadline for final Testing Strategy Plans has been extended to Tuesday, Sept. 15.
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New requirements issued by Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). CMS issued a memo with new COVID-19 testing requirements for long-term care. DHS is analyzing the requirements and implications. Find QSO Memo 20-38-NH here.
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Increasing lab capacity. The State continues to work on adding laboratory capacity. We now have signed contracts Accelerated Analytics, Exact Sciences, Fulgent Genetics, MAKO Medical, Marshfield, Molecular Testing Labs, and NOAH Clinical Laboratory. These labs will help support testing with skilled nursing facilities, community-based testing, and outbreaks.
COVID-19 Testing Pilot Program Supports Local Testing Efforts
The COVID-19 Testing Pilot Program provides financial support to approved providers conducting COVID-19 testing in community-based settings, outbreak-based settings, and high-risk congregate settings. Funding is provided on a first-approved basis for testing conducted by November 15, 2020, or until funds are exhausted.
Who is eligible?
- Any public health department.
- Any health care provider licensed by the State of Wisconsin.
- Others trained on specimen collection under the authority and oversight of a physician.
- Pharmacists are eligible as health care providers.
Is a connection to local or tribal public health departments required?
Yes. Applicants must commit to having connected with their Local or Tribal Health Department and are encouraged to reflect how they are key partners in the community testing activities in the jurisdiction. Learn about and apply for the COVID-19 Testing Pilot Program.
Regional Strike Team: Building Additional Outbreak Testing Capacity in the Western Region
A Regional Strike Team seeks to build additional outreach testing capacity in the Western Region. Brittany Fry, Western Wisconsin Public Health Readiness Consortium director and AZ Snyder, Pierce County Public Health Department health officer, offer some context.
3 key things to know about what the Western Wisconsin Public Health Readiness Consortium is doing
- Nine local and tribal health departments are partnering to establish a Regional Strike Team.
- The Regional Strike Team will be used for outbreaks.
- The Consortium hopes to launch the Regional Strike Team in September.
2 reasons this work is important to their testing strategy
- It leverages existing partnerships between local and tribal health departments.
- Participating counties will have access to more testing capacity than they would have had on their own.
1 challenge/barrier they’re working to address
- The Consortium is working on forecasting need. With school starting, flu season approaching, and fluctuating COVID-19 numbers, this is a challenge. They’re planning to work through this challenge by starting small and scaling up.
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