CDC broadens coronavirus testing guidelines

The CDC just broadened coronavirus testing guidelines. Anyone with COVID-19 symptoms and their doctor's approval can now get tested - but there are still not enough kits.

Today's CDC change greatly expands the pool of patients who can now qualify for diagnostic testing, even though testing capacity remains limited.

From the New York Times:

Doctors were encouraged to first rule out other causes of respiratory illness, like influenza, and to take into consideration whether there are other local coronavirus cases, officials said.

Previous guidelines required a patient to have symptoms of respiratory illness as well as a clear route of exposure, such as recent travel to China or a number of other affected countries, contact with a known coronavirus patient, or hospitalization with a severe and unexplained respiratory illness.

[PHOTO: CDC]