New York State will begin its own testing for the coronavirus. Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Saturday the state received federal approval to conduct its own testing for the COVID-19 strain of the coronavirus. Cuomo said New York has the capacity to do so and that it will alleviate some of the burden on the federal Centers for Disease Control. The testing will be done at the Wadsworth Lab near Albany.
"We'll start testing immediately here in New York, so we can handle more tests, more volume and turn them around faster," Cuomo said. "We are ready to go and literally we can start testing immediately."
Cuomo said he discussed the state's capacity to do its own testing in a telephone conversation with Vice President Mike Pence, who was appointed by President Trump last week to head up the federal response to the coronavirus.
So far, there have been no confirmed cases in New York.