The County of Fresno and Fresno State announced a partnership to help conduct much-needed laboratory analysis for COVID-19. The County and University have teamed up to deploy a temporary public health laboratory that will enhance local capacity for COVID-19 testing analysis.

“The need for timely and accurate test information has never been more important than it is now as we all try to fight this pandemic,” said Fresno County District 4 Supervisor and Board Chairman, Buddy Mendes. “This partnership between the County and Fresno State is critical to getting more test results analyzed quickly so we can help to slow the spread of COVID-19 here in our community and elsewhere.”

Located in the Jordan Agricultural Research Center on the Fresno State campus, the state-of-the-art lab offers proper ventilation, biosafety controls and suitable workspaces for lab technicians. Specifically designed to conduct complex biological testing, the lab will offer the capability to analyze between 40-60 test specimens each day, using a testing method known as polymerase chain reaction (PCR).

The on-campus laboratory is not open to the public. (People who need to be tested should contact their health care provider.) The lab will only receive specimens, as swab tests are conducted offsite.

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