Trump to tout $750 million deal for 150 million Abbott Laboratories COVID-19 tests that promise results in 15 minutes

Impeached President Donald Trump will soon announce a $750 million deal to purchase 150 million rapid Covid-19 tests from Abbott Laboratories, a White House official told the Wall Street Journal on Thursday.

The $5 rapid-response COVID-19 antigen tests from Abbott Laboratories return results in about 15 minutes. The device is about the size of a credit card.

The low-cost, rapid-response test could be administered in a doctor's or school nurse's office and uses technology similar to home pregnancy tests. It returns results in about 15 minutes.

The emergency approval comes as demand grows for greater access to COVID-19 diagnostic tools that deliver results in minutes, rather than days to help quickly contain infections.

Abbott ABT, 8.49% said Wednesday it plans to ship tens of millions of the newly approved tests in September, with plans to increase production to 50 million tests in October. If the company is able to do so, the October total would amount to roughly double the number of tests performed in the U.S. in July.

More at the Wall Street Journal.