COVID-19 Information for Providers & Patients

Detailed information about ESCL’s COVID-19 test can be accessed here: 

Molecular PCR Test Communication

Serology Antibody Testing Client Communication

All testing must be accompanied by the official Human Infection With 2019 Novel Coronavirus Person Under Investigation (PUI) and Case Report Form. Test Code 7305 requires a PUI Form to ensure prioritization and appropriate communication with public health authorities. The PUI Form can be accessed here:

Download PUI Form

The PUI Form may be reviewed for appropriate utilization and prioritized for testing based on CDC and public health guidance. Testing may be delayed if PUI form is not submitted.

Additionally, all submitted specimens must have the SOURCE clearly indicated to avoid potential delays in testing.

No. These multi-pathogen molecular assays can detect a number of human respiratory viruses, including other coronaviruses that can cause acute respiratory illness, but they do not detect COVID-19.

Call your doctor:  If you think you have been exposed to COVID-19 and develop a fever and symptoms, such as cough or difficulty breathing, call your healthcare provider for medical advice.

ESCL Patient Service Centers and phlebotomy sites cannot collect specimens for COVID-19 testing. Please contact your healthcare provider.

Steps If You're Sick

No. Currently, ESCL's and our staff do not collect respiratory (e.g., nasal pharyngeal swabs, sputum) specimens for COVID-19/SARS-CoV-2 testing. Our lab is equipped to perform the laboratory testing only.

• Clean hands often
  • Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds especially after you have been in a public place or after blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing.
  • If soap and water are not readily available, use a hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol. Cover all surfaces of your hands and rub them together until they feel dry.
  • Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.
• Avoid close contact with people who are sick
• Cover coughs and sneezes with a tissue or the inside of your elbow

No. At this time, ESCL's PSCs and IOPs are not equipped with adequate isolation rooms (AIIR) and are not set up to receive patients under investigation (PUI) for COVID-19. Blood draw services for PUIs and/or with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 should be deferred to facilities with an AIIR (e.g., hospitals).

•       The CDC defines “close contact” as (a) being within approximately 6 feet of a COVID-19 case for more than a few minutes; close contact can occur while caring for, living with, visiting, or sharing a health care waiting area or room with a COVID-19 case; OR (b) having direct contact with infectious secretions of a COVID-19 case (e.g., being coughed on).

•       Any patient who has had “close contact” with a person confirmed to have, or being evaluated for, COVID-19 infection, should immediately seek care from a healthcare professional and/or notify their local health department.

The clinical spectrum of COVID-19 ranges from mild disease with non-specific signs and symptoms of acute respiratory illness, to severe pneumonia with respiratory failure and septic shock. There have also been reports of asymptomatic infection with COVID-19.

See also Interim Clinical Guidance for Management of Patients with Confirmed Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19).

No. Currently, ESCL's laboratories and our staff do not collect respiratory (e.g., nasal pharyngeal swabs, sputum) specimens for COVID-19/SARS-CoV-2 testing. Our lab is equipped to perform the laboratory testing only.

Currently, those at greatest risk of infection are persons who have had prolonged, unprotected close contact with a patient with symptomatic, confirmed COVID-19 and those who live in or have recently been to areas with sustained transmission.

No. At this time, ESCL's PSCs and IOPs are not equipped with adequate isolation rooms (AIIR) and are not set up to receive patients under investigation (PUI) for COVID-19. Blood draw services for PUIs and/or with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 should be deferred to facilities with an AIIR (e.g., hospitals).

The available data is currently insufficient to identify risk factors for severe clinical outcomes. From the limited data that is available for COVID-19 infected patients, and for data from related coronaviruses such as SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV, it is possible that older adults, and persons who have underlying chronic medical conditions, such as immunocompromising conditions, may be at risk for more severe outcomes. See also

See also Interim Clinical Guidance for Management of Patients with Confirmed Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19).

Patients planning personal travel should heed the travel restrictions, advisories, and warnings from our government and avoid all non-essential travel to the CDC Level 2 and Level 3 countries (presently China, Japan, South Korea, Italy, and Iran).  Check the CDC’s Traveler’s Health Notices for the latest guidance and recommendations on travel.

The onset and duration of viral shedding and period of infectiousness for COVID-19 are not yet known. It is possible that SARS-CoV-2 RNA may be detectable in the upper or lower respiratory tract for weeks after illness onset, similar to infection with MERS-CoV and SARS-CoV. However, detection of viral RNA does not necessarily mean that infectious virus is present. Asymptomatic infection with SARS-CoV-2 has been reported, but it is not yet known what role asymptomatic infection plays in transmission. Similarly, the role of pre-symptomatic transmission (infection detection during the incubation period prior to illness onset) is unknown. Existing literature regarding SARS-CoV-2 and other coronaviruses (e.g. MERS-CoV, SARS-CoV) suggest that the incubation period may range from 2–14 days.

At this time there is no vaccine to prevent Coronavirus disease. The best way to prevent illness is to avoid being exposed to the virus.

Very limited data is available about the detection of SARS-CoV-2 and infectious virus in clinical specimens. SARS-CoV-2 RNA has been detected from upper and lower respiratory tract specimens, and SARS-CoV-2 has been isolated from upper respiratory tract specimens and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid. SARS-CoV-2 RNA has been detected in blood and stool specimens, but whether an infectious virus is present in extrapulmonary specimens is currently unknown. The duration of SARS-CoV-2 RNA detection in upper and lower respiratory tract specimens and in extrapulmonary specimens is not yet known but may be several weeks or longer, which has been observed in cases of MERS-CoV or SARS-CoV infection. While viable, infectious SARS-CoV has been isolated from respiratory, blood, urine, and stool specimens, in contrast – viable, infectious MERS-CoV has only been isolated from respiratory tract specimens. It is not yet known whether other non-respiratory body fluids from an infected person including vomit, urine, breast milk, or semen can contain viable, infectious SARS-CoV-2.

The immune response to COVID-19 is not yet understood. Patients with MERS-CoV infection are unlikely to be re-infected shortly after they recover, but it is not yet known whether similar immune protection will be observed for patients with COVID-19.

Although the transmission dynamics have yet to be determined, CDC currently recommends a cautious approach to persons under investigation (PUI) for COVID-19. Healthcare personnel evaluating PUI or providing care for patients with confirmed COVID-19 should use, Standard Transmission-based Precautions. See the Interim Infection Prevention and Control Recommendations for Patients with Known or Patients Under Investigation for Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Healthcare Settings.

Patients should receive any interventions they would normally receive as standard of care. Patients with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 should be asked to wear a surgical mask as soon as they are identified and be evaluated in a private room with the door closed. Healthcare personnel entering the room should use Standard and Transmission-based Precautions. 

Healthcare providers should consult with local or state health departments to determine whether patients meet criteria for a Persons Under Investigation (PUI). Providers should immediately notify infection control personnel at their facility if they suspect COVID-19 in a patient. 

Not all patients with COVID-19 require hospital admission. Patients whose clinical presentation warrants in-patient clinical management for supportive medical care should be admitted to the hospital under appropriate isolation precautions. Some patients with an initial mild clinical presentation may worsen in the second week of illness. The decision to monitor these patients in the inpatient or outpatient setting should be made on a case-by-case basis. This decision will depend not only on the clinical presentation, but also on the patient’s ability to engage in monitoring, the ability for safe isolation at home, and the risk of transmission in the patient’s home environment. For more information, see Interim Infection Prevention and Control Recommendations for Patients with Known or Patients Under Investigation for Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) in a Healthcare Setting and Interim Guidance for Implementing Home Care of People Not Requiring Hospitalization for Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19).

More guidance about environmental infection control is available in section 7 of CDC’s Interim Infection Prevention and Control Recommendations for Patients with Confirmed COVID-19 or Persons Under Investigation for COVID-19 in Healthcare Settings.