Enzo BioChem Receives LI Association COVID Hero Award

FARMINGDALE, NY — Enzo Biochem, a Farmingdale-based biotechnology company specializing in molecular diagnostics, received the COVID Hero Award on Tuesday from the Long Island Association, Enzo Biochem announced.

The company was honored for its contributions in making COVID-19 testing widely available to residents in the area during the coronavirus pandemic.

“It is a distinct privilege to receive this COVID Hero Award from the Long Island Association," Hamid Erfanian, Enzo Biochem’s CEO, told Patch. "As members of this community, we felt it was our duty to focus Enzo resources and efforts towards this global health crisis by making our COVID-19 tests available to many local businesses, healthcare professionals, educational institutions and directly to patients through our direct to consumer platform, gotestmenow.com. None of this would have been possible without the sacrifices of Enzo’s employees who all played valuable parts in making this effort successful.”

When the pandemic hit, Enzo Biochem realigned its teams to put the company’s full focus on providing widespread testing and helping stop the spread of COVID-19. The efforts included:

• Developing a COVID PCR testing kit in-house.
• Repurposing existing company technology to accommodate mass processing of these tests.
• Setting up testing sites throughout the area to serve residents.
• Partnering with LI universities and school systems to provide on-site testing to allow the return of students and faculty, with similar efforts aimed at local businesses.
• Created an online portal for individuals to schedule testing rather than waiting in the long lines that had developed.

Enzo Biochem also doubled down on Long Island, bringing all its facilities to Farmingdale. It closed a Michigan plant to accomplish the relocation. The company plans to add about 40 employees this year.