New data from private labs shows 10-fold increase of COVID-19 tests dating back to February

New Data from Private Labs Show Tenfold Increase of COVID-19 Tests Administered in Oklahoma Dating Back to February

The Oklahoma State Department of Health (OSDH) announced today more than 11,000 negative COVID-19 tests were processed by private labs dating back to early February. Due to this newly reported data, OSDH has identified 13,148 COVID-19 tests have been administered in Oklahoma to date.

The new COVID-19 testing numbers were published today in the Governor’s daily COVID-19 report on page five.

“New numbers provided by private labs demonstrate that COVID-19 testing in Oklahoma has been tenfold than what the state could previously report,” said Commissioner of Health Gary Cox. “Private labs have been diligent in reporting positive COVID-19 tests throughout this pandemic in Oklahoma, but it was critical to also receive their negative numbers to understand the full scope of testing. We appreciate the strong partnership of Oklahoma’s private labs that are processing significant volumes of COVID-19 tests on a daily basis.”

Last week, Commissioner Cox issued a letter to remind private labs that the state had designated COVID-19 in early March a disease that is immediately reportable to OSDH. In his letter, Commissioner Cox urged private labs to comply with state statute by reporting both positive COVID-19 test results and negative COVID-19 test results to ensure the agency has the full picture of the virus’ impact in Oklahoma.