Coronavirus Testing Site Opens At UC Santa Cruz

SANTA CRUZ, CA — A testing lab for the new coronavirus opened Friday at the University of California, Santa Cruz.

Test turnaround time is expected to be within 24 to 48 hours and the lab hopes to serve 200 patients per day by June 1, the Santa Cruz Sentinel reported. If the lab is successful, it could perform 1,000 tests per day, the paper reported.

“We’re ready to step up and help meet the need in our community,” said Jeremy Sanford, UC Santa Cruz professor of molecular, cell and developmental biology, in a news release. “Extra testing capacity is needed now, and will be critical once things start to reopen, and that’s what we’re trying to provide.”

The lab received state approval last week and opened Friday. It currently serves UC Santa Cruz Student Health Center patients and Santa Cruz Community Health Centers patients, according to UC Santa Cruz.

UC Santa Cruz purchased equipment for the lab and is hoping to fundraise to support the cost of maintaining the lab.

Medical providers interested in learning more from the lab may contact COVID19Test@ucsc.edu.

Read more about the testing site from UC Santa Cruz.