BD Set to Launch 15-Minute COVID-19 Test in Europe

Companies are quickly filling the demand for more rapid COVID-19-related diagnostics. BD is the latest firm to do so with the availability of its point-of-care, SARS-CoV-2 antigen test for use on the BD Veritor Plus System in Europe.

The Franklin, Lakes, NJ-based firm said the new test delivers results in less than 15 minutes and that it has been CE marked to the IVD Directive.

“Availability of the SARS-CoV-2 assay on the BD Veritor Plus System in Europe builds on our molecular test on the BD MAX System that has been available since March,” Roland Goette, president of BD EMEA Region, said in a release. “The addition of a truly portable, point-of-care test that can deliver results while the patient waits will be welcomed by health care providers and patients alike to help protect against additional waves of COVID-19.”

The test uses the BD Veritor Plus System, which is already in use across Europe to test for conditions such as Group A Strep, influenza A+B and Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV). The BD Veritor Plus System is slightly larger than a mobile phone.

The test has had emergency use authorization from FDA since July. Earlier this week, Cepheid received emergency use authorization for a molecular test that can detect viruses causing COVID-19, flu, and RSV infections.

The Sunnyvale, CA-based company’s diagnostic comes at the beginning of flu season, a time when these tests will be in high demand. As companies are still rolling out diagnostics the pandemic continues to rage on. To date, more than one million people have lost their lives to COVID-19, according to data from www.worldometers.info.