Mayo Clinic partners with state of Minnesota, University of Minnesota on breakthrough COVID-19 initiative
Mayo Clinic joined Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Minnesota Department of Health Commissioner Jan Malcom, the University of Minnesota, and other health system leaders to announce a breakthrough initiative to provide rapid, widespread testing for COVID-19 in Minnesota. The goal of this statewide strategy is to test all symptomatic people, isolate confirmed cases to limit the spread, and expand surveillance tools for public health officials.
“When Minnesota faces a challenge, we rise up — together,” Gov. Walz says. “I’m proud to partner with Minnesota’s innovative health care systems and leading research institutions to pioneer how states can begin to move forward amid COVID-19.”
The partnership is being funded in part by $36 million from the COVID-19 Minnesota Fund. Under the agreement, the laboratory partners will:
- Create a central laboratory with capacity to perform 20,000 molecular and 15,000 serology tests daily.
- Establish a virtual command center to monitor daily testing needs and respond to outbreaks.
- Enable increased public health surveillance and research.
“Mayo Clinic has been a leading voice in COVID-19 testing since the pandemic’s emergence. As always, Mayo Clinic continues to put our communities first,” says William Morice II, M.D., Ph.D. (IMM ’94, MDPH ’94, SGPA ’99, HEMP ’00), president of Mayo Clinic Laboratories. “Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Mayo Clinic has prioritized Minnesota’s needs, offering the state open access to Mayo’s high-quality testing capabilities, and providing assistance and expertise whenever asked. Our commitment continues today as we pledge further support for Minnesota’s statewide testing strategy.”
In the coming weeks, Mayo Clinic will continue to work with its health care partners around the state, now in partnership with the University of Minnesota, to greatly expand testing capacity and work out the operational details of the statewide testing program.