AUGUSTA, Maine — The Maine Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) and the Maine-based IDEXX Laboratorites, Inc., announced on Thursday the start of operations at the mobile laboratory that will quadruple the state’s current COVID-19 testing capabilities.
The mobile lab, stationed at the Health and Environmental Testing Laboratory (HETL) in Augusta, is federally funded and certified. As of this week, the mobile lab is accepting specimens and reporting results.
DHHS also announced Thursday that it’s extending its financial support of 27 swab and send locations through at least the end of October.
HETL’s maximum testing capacity is increasing from approximately 6,000 per week to more than 25,000 per week. Some surge capacity will be reserved to ensure the lab is positioned to respond to any future outbreaks and to maintain streamlined operations. This added capacity is made possible through the State’s partnership with IDEXX for additional test kits, personnel, and the mobile lab.
“This is another significant step forward in our efforts to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. On behalf of the people of Maine, I applaud our staff at the State lab and thank IDEXX for their continued partnership, which has made reliable testing more widely available across our state,” Governor Janet Mills said in a statement. “While this expansion of testing is welcome news, testing alone cannot prevent new cases or new outbreaks. Only we can do that by continuing to do our part and take the necessary steps to protect our health and the health of our loved ones as we welcome fall in Maine.”
IDEXX Corporate Vice President Olivier te Boekhorst said the company is pleased to contribute to the fight against COVID-19 “both here in Maine and across the globe” by leveraging the capabilities of the lab.
The federal funding for swab and send providers was originally set to end by Aug. 31, but that has been extended to Oct. 31. All swab and send sites send samples to HETL. After October, swab and sends will bill insurance companies for the service.
“This reimbursement supports swab and send locations in offering testing free of charge to individuals who believe they may have COVID-19 or could have been exposed to the virus, with or without symptoms, as defined under the DHHS Standing Order,” Maine DHHS says.
Maine DHHS says as of Thursday, the increase of volume at HETL contributed to 273 tests per 100,000 people, an increase of nearly 60 percent since the first week of August. Last week, HETL crossed the threshold of processing 50,000 COVID-19 samples since March, surpassing the annual volume for all clinical microbiology tests, such as flu tests, for each of the past five years.
“The staff at HETL have worked tirelessly throughout this pandemic to ensure that Maine people and visitors have access to reliable and timely COVID-19 testing results,” Maine DHHS Commissioner Jeanne Lambrew said. “The mobile lab is critical to expanding Maine’s testing capacity and keeping infection rates low as we enter the fall. We thank IDEXX for their strong partnership, valued collaboration, and contribution to Maine’s high ranking among states in COVID-19 response.”