City's own COVID-19 testing lab a success

When it became clear early in the pandemic that limited testing capacity would be an ongoing problem, city officials took the matter into their own hands. 

By September, they created the Epidemic Response Laboratory, which is now operating at almost full capacity and is being hailed as a success story.

what you need to know

9 月，该市开设了自己的测试处理实验室，即位于曼哈顿的流行病应对实验室
该实验室现在每天处理 15,000 至 20,000 次测试，使纽约人可以在 24 至 48 小时内获得测试结果
白思豪市长周三参观了该实验室，称其为测试积压的“本土解决方案”
全市每天总共进行超过 75,000 次新冠病毒检测

“This is a homegrown solution,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said. "I want to be clear. This does not exist. It was enacted by New Yorkers in response to the coronavirus in New York City."

On Wednesday, the mayor toured the lab, which is currently processing 15,000 to 20,000 tests per day and has a current capacity of 30,000 cases. The state-of-the-art facility, run by Brooklyn-based robotics company Opentrons, allows New Yorkers to get test results within 24 to 48 hours. 

The mayor said this is crucial to plans for weekly testing of the city's schools.

"We cannot reopen schools without such facilities. The Epidemic Response Laboratory has assured us that tens of thousands of tests can be completed and processed every day," he said.

Overall, the city is currently conducting more than 75,000 coronavirus tests per day, a number the mayor hopes will expand to closer to 100,000 as cases continue to surge, driving demand.

City officials say another benefit of the pandemic response lab is its affordability: Each test costs about $28, compared with the $100 per test at most state labs.