Trump administration to distribute 150 mln rapid COVID-19 tests

U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday announced the distribution of 150 million rapid COVID-19 tests that are able to deliver a result in 15 minutes and display it in a similar format to a home pregnancy kit.

The tests will be distributed across the country in the coming weeks to vulnerable communities, nursing homes and other places, media reports say.

Some 100 million devices will go to states and territories to assist them in opening their economies and schools. Trump has urged the use of increased testing capacity to speed up school reopenings and restart the economy.

Each of the kits cost the federal government five dollars, and the health department said in a statement that Abbott Laboratories, their makers, plans to make 48 million available monthly in the coming weeks.

U.S. health experts warned of a surge in positive diagnoses to 30 percent in parts of the midwest regions and said the rise in the number of tests cannot be interpreted by itself.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Monday reported a total of 7,095,422 cases of COVID-19, an increase of 36,335 cases from its previous count, and said that the number of deaths had risen by 295 to 204,328.