The University of Arizona is planning to launch the Cats TakeAway Testing program, which will allow students, employees and “designated campus colleagues,” to take a COVID-19 test on the go, school officials announced on Monday, Sept. 13.
The saline gargle PCR test, which involves swishing and gargling a saline solution before spitting it into a tube, can be completed anywhere and then returned to a designated campus location for analysis. No appointment is required.
The tests will be offered in addition to the university’s existing in-person testing options.
Initial pickup and drop-off locations planned for the Cats TakeAway Tests include the Health Sciences Library, the Administration Building, Facilities Management, the Global Center, McClelland Hall, the Student Recreation Center, the Student Union Memorial Center and the Student Success District. Those with symptoms can get the test at Campus Health. Additional locations are in the works and will be announced soon, University of Arizona President Robert C. Robbins said during a virtual briefing on Monday.
“What we’re looking for, of course, are those asymptomatic people who have no idea that they’re infected and are infecting others,” he said.
According to Nature.com, “Research early in the pandemic suggested that the rate of asymptomatic infections could be as high as 81%. But a meta-analysis published last month, which included 13 studies involving 21,708 people, calculated the rate of asymptomatic presentation to be 17%.”
While the university does not require testing, Robbins has inexplicably encouraged all members of the campus community to get tested weekly, regardless of vaccination status.