Tennessee shifts to self-swabbed COVID-19 tests to free up staff
Tennesseans will begin collecting their own nasal swabs as the health department shifts its testing COVID-19 procedures to free up staff for vaccinations in the coming weeks.
The Tennessee Department of Health announced it will use self-testing kits on Mondays, Wednesday and Fridays, starting next week, at dozens of testing centers run by the state government. Adults will be given a self-testing kit, then collect their sample in their car and submit the sample to be sent to a lab. Standard nasal swabs will be used on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Self-testing kits are not approved for use by children, so families who need to test kids should visit testing centers on Tuesday or Thursday.
The shift will impact governmentrun testing centers outside of Tennessee’s urban areas. In major cities like Nashville and Memphis, county governments run their own testing centers, which will be unaffected by the policy change. However, testing centers in 89 suburban and rural counties fall under the purview of the state government and therefore will begin the self-administered tests.
“We’re making this transition so our Department of Health staff can assist with administration of safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines,” Health Commissioner Dr. Lisa Piercey said in a news release. “State-run health departments currently collect an average of only 16 percent of all COVID-19 tests statewide, and our change will not affect the wide availability of testing through private providers in Tennessee.”