The world is going through the dark hours and in desperate need of a cure for ailments to fight against one of the most contagious diseases, COVID-19. Yet, few countries are good at playing secrets.
The former researcher of the University of Florida, a 59-year-old Tan, had to flee the U.S. due to the investigation under Trump’s administration on university researchers having ties with China. Tan, a chemistry professor, moved to Hunan University in south-central China where he conducts his research on diagnosing and treating cancer. Tan left Florida in 2019 due to his inability to justify Chinese academic appointments and funding.
However, COVID-19 outbreak has shifted Tan’s attention in developing a test-kit during the initial outbreak in China. He started working along with other researchers in China and a biotechnology company on a test kit that can produce results in 40 minutes. The test is easy to perform and can be conducted in a medical or non-medical setting. Over 200 samples from various hospitals and checkpoints have been tested successfully.
Florida began investigating Tan’s outside activities last year as alerted by NIH. Michael Lauer, the agency’s deputy director for extramural research, said that there’s no reason why the U.S. government should be funding scientists who are engaged in unethical behaviour. It doesn’t matter how brilliant they are. If they don’t have integrity, we can’t trust them for anything. How can we be sure that the data they’re producing is accurate?
On the other-hand, Everlywell, a home testing company that offers dozens of lab tests to consumers located at the US founded by Julia Cheek, announced that at-home collection kit with telehealth diagnosis for COVID-19 will be available from March 23. Additionally, the company has announced a 1 million dollar development incentive to any certified laboratories that meet the requirements set by the FDA and Everlywell to prioritize development of a COVID-19 diagnostic test.
The test can be requested online by consumers experiencing COVID-19 symptoms. Samples can be collected at home, preventing further exposure for themselves and the public.
The COVID-19 test kit will be shipped to customers with everything needed to collect samples at home and safely ship them to a CLIA-certified laboratory partner. The company set an easy protocol of collecting samples which will be shipped to partner labs with overnight delivery. Suspected patients can view their results online within 48 hours after receiving the sample, and free telehealth consultations with an independent, board-certified physician will be available for those with positive results.