As Governor Bill Lee focuses on expanding COVID-19 testing, the Unified Command Group is working to provide information to help Tennesseans understand how serology, or antibody, can, and cannot, inform the state’s re-opening strategy, his office said Monday.
Officials said, "Although the research is still ongoing, this will give us a first estimate of the number of Tennesseans with COVID-19 antibodies, which will assist us in developing our strategy for more widespread antibody test of the general population.
"The Tennessee Department of Health will be distributing a technical brief to health care providers in Tennessee with details about antibody testing and its limitations. TDH is also working on a plan to test of up 10,000 health care workers in Tennessee’s public teaching hospitals."
Q: How is a COVID-19 antibody test different than the nasal swab test I received at the health department?
A: An antibody test involves taking a blood sample to detect cells in the body that have previously been exposed to, and fought off, a virus. A nasal swab test only detects whether a patient currently has a viral infection.
Q: It seems there are many antibody tests already available, doesn’t that mean the tests have been approved and proven to be effective?
A: The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has only approved six COVID-19 antibody tests for clinical use, and most of these have not been widely distributed. There are many antibody tests in the FDA’s pipeline and may ultimately receive approval. However, most of the antibody tests ready for use have not been validated.
Q: Isn’t it better to know whether or not I’ve had COVID-19 by getting an antibody test?
A: The primary issue with these unproven antibody tests is they can give patients false-positive results by detecting other types of coronaviruses, usually the kind that cause the common cold. A false-positive result may lead to a conclusion that a patient has immunity to COVID-19, when what the test really shows is, at some point in time, the patient was exposed to another type of coronavirus and its antibodies are present, not the antibodies for COVID-19.
Q: If I have antibodies in my blood, doesn’t it mean I’m immune to COVID-19?
A: There is not enough data yet on COVID-19 antibody testing to prove having the antibodies will prevent a person from being re-infected with COVID-19. There are some indications most, maybe not all, people who have been infected with COVID-19 will develop antibodies in their blood that can be detected for a period of time. There isn’t enough data to confirm this is true, or if it happens to be true how long the immunity will last.
Earlier Monday, Governor Lee participated in his weekly call with the White House. He said, "There was significant conversation around rebooting the economy and expanding testing, both of which we are aggressively pursuing in Tennessee.
"The Trump Administration continues to be accessible and insightful as we work together to fight COVID-19 and get our people back to work."
On Friday, elective medical procedures will be allowed to resume "so Tennessee nurses and other hospital workers can get back to work." The governor said, "It’s important to get hospitals back online with elective procedures so Tennesseans can safely resume more routine services, including scheduling quality of life procedures. Procedures like routine screenings and joint replacements are included in this first wave."
He said the state of Tennessee "will continue to weigh appropriate measures to ensure we are fiscally conservative through this pandemic. I have directed the Tennessee Department of Finance & Administration to temporarily freeze any new non-mission critical hires to our state’s workforce.
"At the state level, we will continue to keep employees working from home until May 26. This means that state services can continue without disruption as we work towards the gradual return of working in office."
Universal Guidance for Tennessee Businesses can be accessed here.
Restaurant Industry Guidance can be accessed here.
Retail Industry Guidance can be accessed here.
Additional information on Tennessee's Economic Recovery Group is available here.