The one test students don’t mind taking.
Simple and accurate COVID-19 testing to keep kids in the classroom. Safely.
It’s as easy as 1-2-3!
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Answers Within 24 Hours
TestingWorks! is CLIA-certified and CAP accredited. We manage the entire process from collection to lab testing to reporting, so you’ll have COVID-19 test results within 24 hours (on average). Faster testing means safer schools.
Why Test?
The TestingWorks! model supports schools and allows them to confidently remain open. Our goal is to have every child safely back in the classroom for the 2021–2022 school year!
Why Test?
The TestingWorks! model supports schools and allows them to confidently remain open. Our goal is to have every child safely back in the classroom for the 2021–2022 school year!
You've Got Questions, We've Got Answers
For Schools
Pooled testing is performed by combining (pooling) samples from multiple people and testing them together in the lab. Pooled testing is most helpful in areas where the COVID-19 transmission rate is low, and thus most respiratory samples are expected to be negative for the virus. Our lab does two types of pooling.
Individual Test: Students or staff collect their sample and package individually on-site. When the samples arrive at Aegis, the lab combines the samples into pools and tests each pool as a single sample. For negative pools, all individuals are negative, and the results are released to the school. For positive pools, Aegis reflex-tests every individual sample separately. Students and staff all receive an individual result.
Pooled Test: A group of up to 10 students or staff collects their samples and combines them into a single, pooled sample on-site. Aegis tests each pool as one single sample and reports whether the pool is positive or negative. If the pool is positive, a follow-up test for each student or staff member in the pool will be needed to determine their individual results.
Testing samples in pools helps save time, money and laboratory resources. This allows the lab to test more samples at once and provides a larger number of results more quickly, which is helpful for schools to maintain normal operations. The reduction in resources allows for pooled testing to be completed at a much lower cost than individual testing. Testing in pools helps support increased in-person education.
Results from our Individual Tests allow only those individuals with positive tests to quarantine and greatly reduce contact tracing efforts. For Pooled Tests, those within a positive pool group must quarantine.
The whole process usually takes around 20 minutes and can be broken down into these simple steps:
Set Up: Gather supplies to set up a collection station.
Collect Samples: Each test takes around 15 seconds, and multiple students can collect their samples at one time. We recommend students be supervised in relatively small groups. This lets them maintain a safe distance and makes sure each student completes the test correctly.
Pack Up & Clean Up: Pack up the kits to send to our lab. Schools can save untouched supplies for future use, but any supplies that have been touched should be discarded. Remember to sanitize your hands after testing is done!
This will vary by school, and our team will work with you to determine the safest next steps. If the samples are pooled at our lab, each student or staff receives an individual positive/negative result, no follow-up test is needed, and contact tracing occurs only for positive individuals.
If the samples are pooled on-site, additional contact tracing occurs for the students in the pool (up to 10) and we recommend that the families in positive pools quarantine and receive a follow-up test.
The price for an individual test through TestingWorks! varies based on the testing options selected. However, schools have a variety of funding options that allow the testing to be performed at no overall cost to the school or students.
There are several funding options available for schools for testing. OpenAndSafeSchools.org is a great resource for understanding funding options, testing toolkits and connecting with other school districts on the Peer-to-Peer hub. Some funding options include:
- CDC’s Epidemiology Laboratory and Capacity (ELC) Cooperative Agreement, which allocated $10 billion to states and territories for school testing
- Increasing Community Access to Testing (ICATT), which directly supports schools in high-need areas
- Operation Expand Testing (ET) which will establish three or four regional coordination hubs to expand K–8 testing programs through $650 million in funding
For Parents
Pooled testing is performed by combining (pooling) samples from multiple people and testing them together in the lab. This works in two ways depending on your child’s school. Schools may choose to test students individually and have us combine the samples. If any pools are positive, all of the individual samples are automatically reflexed to an individual test. Your student will receive an individual result. This allows us to determine positive cases without follow-up testing required.
Other schools may choose to pool tests on-site. This means up to 10 students are tested together and their samples are placed in a single test tube. If the pool is positive, the school will reach out to those families to determine next steps and follow-up testing.
For both options, the school sends the tests to our lab, and we’ll have results ready within 24 hours (on average).
TestingWorks! kits are analyzed in the lab of Aegis Sciences Corporation. For more than 30 years, Aegis Sciences has been recognized as a national leader in health care and forensic laboratory sciences. To date, Aegis has performed over 5 million COVID-19 tests, and tests undergo strict quality assurance practices to ensure accuracy. Aegis Sciences Corporation is accredited by the College of American Pathologists (CAP) and are CLIA-certified through the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Since Feb. 2, 2021, Aegis has reported an average turnaround time of under eight hours after receipt of samples at lab.