Local Lab CDC-Approved to Test for Ebola

NBC 7 has learned only one San Diego County lab is approved by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention to test for Ebola: the Naval Health Research Center (NHRC).

"We do have the certification and capability to test for Ebola should a medical -- civilian or military -- center need the support," said NHRC spokeswoman Anna Hancock in a statement.

She said theirs is the only lab in the county that is part of the CDC's National Laboratory Response Network.

However, should a patient fall ill with the virus, county health officials say they will still send samples elsewhere.

β€œTo date, the County Health and Human Services Agency has not tested any for Ebola. If a test was performed on a possible Ebola patient, the specimens would be sent to the Los Angeles Public Health Lab and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for confirmation,” said Public Health Officer Wilma Wooten.

According to Wooten, the time it takes to diagnose would be the same whether the testing is done in San Diego or Los Angeles.

Either way, a patient would be isolated and treated as if they had Ebola from the onset until the test came back.

However, Wooten said if a person in the military came to the Navy’s medical center and required Ebola testing, it could be done at the NHRC.

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