Three Va. labs selected for OneLab Network

Initiative to expand COVID-19 testing capacity

Published November 10, 2020 by Sydney Lake

Virginia Tech scientists Linda Wang (left) and Carla Finkielstein analyze COVID-19 samples. Photo courtesy Virginia Tech

The state Department of General Services and Virginia Department of Health awarded three Virginia laboratories contracts to participate in the state’s new OneLab Network, aimed to expand the commonwealth’s COVID-19 testing capacity, the departments announced Tuesday.

The OneLab Network, established by DGS’ Division of Consolidated Laboratory Services (DCLS) and VDH, formalizes a coordinated COVID-19 laboratory testing system. Contracts have been awarded to Virginia Tech, University of Virginia Medical Center and Norfolk-based Sentara Healthcare. Labs were selected by geographic location and ability to provide rapid test results in their regions. DCLS serves as the primary laboratory in partnership with the Fairfax County Health Department Lab.

“We have said all along that it will take everyone working together to control the spread of COVID-19, and the OneLab Network does that by bringing together Virginia’s strong public health system with our clinical hospital and university lab partners to provide priority testing across the commonwealth,” Gov. Ralph Northam said in a statement. “We have come a long way in increasing our COVID-19 testing capabilities over the past several months, and the new OneLab Network will help ensure public health has continued access to high-quality testing and prompt results.”

“Developing a novel, accurate genetic test for the SARS-CoV-2 virus and establishing a fully operational testing facility in a matter of weeks was a critical part of our plan to protect our campus and communities,” Virginia Tech President Tim Sands said in a statement. “As a Virginia land-grant university, we’re proud to have the opportunity to expand this vital service through our partnership with the commonwealth.”

With a goal of performing 7,000 more tests per day by the end of 2020, the network will work to increase testing capabilities through outbreak investigations, community testing events and testing in congregate settings. State Health Commissioner Dr. Norman Oliver said at Northam’s COVID-19 public briefing Tuesday that the state health department is conducting about 19,000 to 20,000 tests a day currently, and a focus now, Northam added, is to have faster test results available, particularly for health care providers.

The state currently uses multiple private vendors to assist with laboratory capacity. The three contracted labs will offer several U.S. Food and Drug Administration-approved polymerase chain reaction (PCR) diagnostic tests. Each lab will receive funding for purchasing testing instrumentation.

“Public health laboratories serve as the backbone of a national network that responds quickly to novel diseases, natural disasters, foodborne outbreaks, and other public health emergencies; however, they are not designed to provide the levels of testing needed to control the spread of a disease such as COVID-19,” DCLS Director Denise Toney said in a statement. “That’s what makes the OneLab Network such a unique and beneficial concept, where public health is working in collaboration with hospital and university partners to provide the level of testing needed to meet the public health challenges of today and tomorrow.”