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Ginkgo Bioworks this week said it is collaborating with Quest Diagnostics to provide COVID-19 testing for grades K-12 to support in-class learning nationwide. The Boston-based firm noted that Quest can perform 300,000 COVID-19 molecular tests daily through its network of two dozen COVID-19 testing labs, while Ginkgo's Concentric by Ginkgo platform allows schools to sign up for testing, secure data management, order supplies, integrate follow-up testing regimes, and provide support services.

While people might be able to use the terms interchangeably in day-to-day convos, there actually are differences between the terms "disease" and "infection." Technically, a disease is considered an advanced form of an infection, Damian "Pat" Alagia, MD, ob-gyn and the senior medical director for advanced diagnostics and women's health at Quest Diagnostics, tells Health.

Quest Diagnostics has extended its QuestDirect COVID-19 Testing Program to small businesses. The program, which was designed to help small businesses foster safer environments for their employees and customers using insights from easy, fast and convenient COVID-19 molecular diagnostic and/or antibody testing services, is now available for wider use.

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, workers at Quest Diagnostics are sharing what it's been like working on the front lines. Quest is a leader in diagnostic testing throughout the nation and has played a critical role during the pandemic.

Preventive tests fell sharply in the early weeks of the pandemic. Although they've started to rebound, many patients remain undiagnosed or face waits for office visits. To combat this, several insurers sent at-home colon cancer screenings kits to patients who were due for their exam. Last month, Quest Diagnostics rolled out a similar type of at-home screening. The company made its first bet in consumer-directed testing long before the start of the pandemic, when it launched an at-home STD test in 2019.