Originally released: July 14, 2020
Last updated: September 22, 2020
Updates since July 14:
- As of September 22, 2020, California's testing capacity and turnaround time have improved. As a result and until further notice, all four tiers in the Testing Prioritization Guidance originally dated July 14, 2020 will have equal priority for testing.
- Close contacts of confirmed cases moved from Tier 1 priority to Tier 2 priority on July 23.
- The definition of individuals working in the emergency services sector was expanded on August 3.
This guidance is an update to the interim COVID-19 testing guidance issued by the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) on May 1, 2020. This updated guidance is intended to support public health officials, health care providers, and laboratories in determining who should be tested given the current context of the COVID-19 pandemic in California.
What's new in this revision compared to May 1, 2020 Testing Guidance?
COVID-19 testing in California has rapidly expanded over the past three months and we have learned much about COVID-19 and which populations and communities it impacts disproportionately.
Consequently,
CDPH recommends first prioritizing testing of hospitalized individuals with
signs or symptoms of COVID-19 infection followed by testing of other
symptomatic individuals and higher risk asymptomatic individuals and then other
asymptomatic individuals when certain conditions exist. This guidance
should be used for prioritization of patient populations as well as for the
purposes of guiding laboratories in managing specimen processing.