Nevada has reversed a statewide order directing nursing homes to halt their use of two rapid coronavirus tests, the New York Times reports.
It adds Nevada issued the order earlier this month after determining that 23 out of a set of 39 positive antigen test results from nursing homes there were false positives. According to the Times, the state directed nursing homes to shift to other tests while the false positive results were investigated.
However, this order rankled federal officials, the Times writes. The federal government, it notes, sent rapid tests made by Quidel and Becton Dickinson to nursing homes around the US to address equipment and testing shortages. Brett Giroir, assistant secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, sent a letter to Nevadan officials that said its statewide order was "unwise, uninformed and unlawful" and violated the Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness Act, it adds.
The Times adds that in a statement, Ihsan Azzam, Nevada's chief medical officer, says he and his colleagues were "very disappointed by the letter received today." Nevada, it notes, has rescinded its order, but encourages positive antigen tests to be confirmed by PCR testing.