The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, part of HHS, is investing $24 million with two companies working on different approaches to making cheap and easy-to-use at-home flu tests.
Four things to know:
1. Cue Health will receive $14 million to create a flu test to add to its in-home health monitoring technology platform, Rick Bright, director of the biomedical agency, told NBC News. The other $10 million is going to medical diagnostics startup Diassess. The company is developing a test similar to a home pregnancy test — patients use it once and throw it away, Mr. Bright said.
2. Patients who may have the flu would never have to leave their homes with an at-home test, preventing the virus from spreading in medical offices. Using this technology, patients could take the test, then use an app or a device to send the information to their physician, who could prescribe medication that could be delivered to the home. "It would slow the spread of an epidemic or a pandemic," Mr. Bright said.
"If healthcare providers and the government knew where the influenza hot spots were occurring around the country," he added, "we would know where to get medical supplies, where to target vaccines and drugs."
3. Tests would have to be connected to both a physician's office and federal databases for them to reach their full potential in preventing epidemics. That tie-in is part of Cue's platform, and an app could be used with the Diassess test, Mr. Bright said.
4. Mr. Bright said he hopes to try similar approaches to test for Zika outbreaks or other spreading viruses if the at-home flu tests are successful.