Los Angeles County will stop using Curative COVID-19 tests at pop-up testing sites after a U.S. Food and Drug Administration alert to patients and health care providers that the test could produce false negatives.
The county Department of Health Services said in a statement Sunday that it will change to Fulgent Genetics tests this week.
The department said Curative PCR tests used at the pop-up sites between Dec. 13 and Jan. 2 made up about 10% of all COVID-19 tests administered at county-supported test sites during that same period.
Curative also runs dozens of self-administered testing sites across the Bay Area and has partnered with local government entities such as Marin County and the Alameda County Office of Education.
The FDA says that to reduce the risk of false negatives, Curative tests should be used by people displaying actual symptoms of COVID-19 and should be performed under observation by a trained health care worker.
The city of Los Angeles, meanwhile, announced that its massive COVID-19 testing site at Dodger Stadium will transition into a vaccination center by the end of this week.