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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.

Prescription and illicit drug testing rates declined during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, according to a study published in the journal Population Health Management. Harvey W Kaufman, MD, MBA, FCAP, senior medical director, information ventures and office of chief medical officer at Quest Diagnostics conducted the study along with colleagues.

Quest Diagnostics had been preparing for 2020 for two years. As one of the top medical-testing providers in the nation, it first launched its consumer-initiated testing program, QuestDirect, at the end of 2018. Through it, consumers can visit the company's website and order at-home testing kits for 49 different conditions.

Nearly six years after launching a joint venture with IQVIA’s contract research progenitor, Quintiles, Quest Diagnostics is handing over the remainder of its minority share in return for $760 million in cash.

Quest Diagnostics is offering $0 out-of-pocket testing. Drive-thru testing is available Monday through Friday, from 9 a.m. to 4 a.m. Partnering with Walmart locations, appointments can be made through Quest Diagnostics’ online portal.

The COVID-19 pandemic affected diagnostic testing much like it did other parts of the healthcare delivery system — it demanded completely novel approaches at some points, and merely accelerated trends underway at others. In other words, an evolution became a revolution. That revolution, according to Quest Diagnostics Chief Medical Officer Jay Wohlgemuth, MD, can be categorized by just a few words, most notably “convenience.”