Over 30,000 AdventHealth Coronavirus Tests Deemed Unreliable Due to Third-Party Processing Lab
18 May 2020 | In an update on the coronavirus death toll that has passed 90,000 in the United States, CNN Health reported on major testing challenges experienced by AdventHealth, the Adventist hospital network headquartered in Altamonte Springs, Florida.
AdventHealth told CNN that about 35,000 coronavirus tests, 33,000 of them conducted in Florida, were seen as unreliable.
The reason for this was an unidentified processing lab that had experienced problems.
AdventHealth said it was “working diligently” to communicate the news to those affected.
The network has stopped working with the lab on test results.
“AdventHealth has advised that one of the labs they were using for the sputum based COVID-19 testing at our Daytona State College – Palm Coast testing site was unreliable. They are taking responsibility and will be contacting the impacted individuals directly to offer options,” Flagler County Emergency Services reported on Twitter.
The unreliable test results were reported by CNN alongside questions about the accuracy of antibody tests, which are designed to detect whether someone has previously been exposed to the virus.
It is still unclear whether having coronavirus antibodies gives someone long-term immunity or any immunity at all against COVID-19.
AdventHealth is a non-profit health care organization that operates over 40 hospital campuses within the Southern and Midwestern regions of the United States. Its headquarters is in Altamonte Springs, Florida. It is affiliated with the Adventist Church.