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This is a F*^%ing joke @US_FDA
Only now, after 150,000 deaths, a test is finally authorized for asymptomatic screening.
Worse, this offers nothing new!
Americans will still require a doctors prescription to get an asymptomatic screen!
1/n https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/coronavirus-covid-19-update-fda-authorizes-first-diagnostic-test-screening-people-without-known-or
Only now, after 150,000 deaths, a test is finally authorized for asymptomatic screening.
Worse, this offers nothing new!
Americans will still require a doctors prescription to get an asymptomatic screen!
1/n https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/coronavirus-covid-19-update-fda-authorizes-first-diagnostic-test-screening-people-without-known-or
@US_FDA is the gatekeeper to what tests can be performed.
The US testing program is an absolute failure and, in turn, offering no useful avenue to help curb outbreaks.
Why is this not seen as the daily f*^%ing emergency that it is!?
Many people are dying every hour
2/n
The US testing program is an absolute failure and, in turn, offering no useful avenue to help curb outbreaks.
Why is this not seen as the daily f*^%ing emergency that it is!?
Many people are dying every hour
2/n
We have to rally around new ideas.
The FDA, as the gatekeeper, must take a leading role to be imaginative and think outside the box!
Or at least get people to help think outside the box.
Continuing to simply apply diagnostic tests to screening is not working.
3/
The FDA, as the gatekeeper, must take a leading role to be imaginative and think outside the box!
Or at least get people to help think outside the box.
Continuing to simply apply diagnostic tests to screening is not working.
3/
Worse, formally opening up diagnostic tests to asymptomatic screens will only further erode the already failing #COVI19 diagnostic turnaround times.
Offering pools of 5 will not help either
This is a national catastrophe and @US_FDA must consider whole different approaches
4/n
Offering pools of 5 will not help either
This is a national catastrophe and @US_FDA must consider whole different approaches
4/n
Or, alternatively, FDA can release their stranglehold over screening tests and allow other public health agencies (ie county / state) to decide what can be done
There are many ways to use screening to control outbreaks - but none can occur within the existing approved structures
There are many ways to use screening to control outbreaks - but none can occur within the existing approved structures
Finally, my apologies for the pseudo swearing. I am just so sick of inaction and lack of imaginative change
Why do we call ourselves the most innovative nation when in a national crisis we just keep doing the exact same thing and hope it will eventually do something different.
Why do we call ourselves the most innovative nation when in a national crisis we just keep doing the exact same thing and hope it will eventually do something different.
This is one option for how to turn this around but requires thinking very differently at the FDA
https://twitter.com/profvrr/status/1283741664285200384?s=21 https://twitter.com/profvrr/status/1283741664285200384
https://twitter.com/profvrr/status/1283741664285200384?s=21 https://twitter.com/profvrr/status/1283741664285200384
And here is a link to an @nytimes OpEd we wrote about the issue
https://twitter.com/michaelmina_lab/status/1279086348310392840?s=21 https://twitter.com/michaelmina_lab/status/1279086348310392840
https://twitter.com/michaelmina_lab/status/1279086348310392840?s=21 https://twitter.com/michaelmina_lab/status/1279086348310392840
And an abbreviated and illustrated version of the TWIV interview that was compiled by @MedCramVideos is linked here.
https://twitter.com/michaelmina_lab/status/1285742063946956803?s=21 https://twitter.com/michaelmina_lab/status/1285742063946956803
https://twitter.com/michaelmina_lab/status/1285742063946956803?s=21 https://twitter.com/michaelmina_lab/status/1285742063946956803
Also here are two papers by us
One detailing more frequent cheaper tests even if lower sensitivity
https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.06.22.20136309v2
and one detailing just how much more we can get from pooling much larger groups of samples together than FDAs 5.
https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.05.01.20086801v1
One detailing more frequent cheaper tests even if lower sensitivity
https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.06.22.20136309v2
and one detailing just how much more we can get from pooling much larger groups of samples together than FDAs 5.
https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.05.01.20086801v1
