NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- The FDA has approved a COVID-19 saliva swab test that SUNY Upstate Medical University co-developed, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Wednesday.
The diagnostic test, which Upstate and Syracuse-based biotechnology company Quadrant Biosciences developed, was granted "emergency use authorization" on Wednesday, Cuomo said in a release.
SUNY schools have already been using the test on their campuses, but the new authorization will "help additional labs begin to use this test, helping pinpoint and contain the virus and protect New Yorkers," the release said.
"From the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, it's been clear that testing is one of the most critical tools we have to slow the spread," Cuomo said in a statement. "I want to thank SUNY's talented team that produced this simple, quick and effective solution to conduct more testing, faster."
In his own statement, SUNY Chancellor Jim Malatras called the test "game-changing."
"With this approval, the innovation… will be leveraged on a national scale," Malatras said.
The New York State Department of Health started allowing SUNY campuses to use the test, which uses saliva swabs instead of nose swabs, in August, the release noted.
