ORONO, Maine — As concerns over the COVID-19 omicron variant grow, the University of Maine System said it's prepared to track this strain of the virus.
Shield T3 Health provides PCR tests to all UMaine System campuses. It confirmed Friday that its tests can detect all COVID-19 variants, including omicron.
All tests performed on UMaine campuses are sent to its mobile testing lab located outside the Harold Alfond Sports Stadium on the Orono campus. The lab has been stationed there since January of this year.
David Waggoner, general manager of the mobile testing lab, said test results usually come back within four hours.
"We collaborate with the state CDC laboratory, and we send positive samples to them, and they define what variant is present," Waggoner said.
Shield T3 also provides testing to other agencies across the state, including the Maine Dept. of Health and Human Services, the Maine Community College System, and the Maine Public Employees Retirement System. The mobile testing lab can process up to 10,000 tests per day.
David Clark, CEO of Shield T3 Health, said there is a fair amount of spare capacity for testing at the lab.
"We'd be happy to entertain opportunities to expand COVID testing within the state of Maine, both in a public setting and for private employers, as well as other community-based organizations," Clark said.
For more information about Shield T3 Health's PCR testing, click here.
Joan Ferrini-Mundy, president of UMaine, said this testing is important for a community of students and faculty that frequently interact with families and community members across the state.
"Having the testing capability for us right here on our campus is huge because that's a way that we can begin to pick up positive cases and do something rapidly about that," Ferrini-Mundy said.
For Friday's COVID-19 data on cases within the University of Maine System, click here.
As of Dec. 3, no cases of the omicron variant have been detected in the state of Maine.