Community Labs is a nonprofit organization committed to creating COVID-19 Safety Zones in schools and other businesses by testing for asymptomatic COVID-19 patients with speed, accuracy, and the ability to scale to large populations in a zone. Through a non-invasive, front-of-nose swab of a nostril, Community Labs can provide accurate results in 24 hours. The lab, based in San Antonio, will start with 600 tests a day, scale to 12,000 tests a day, and have the potential to scale significantly in the near future.

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Community Labs is about getting back to school, back to work, and back together, safely.

Community Labs is a nonprofit organization committed to creating COVID-19 Safety Zones in schools and other businesses by testing for asymptomatic COVID-19 patients with speed, accuracy, and the ability to scale to large populations in a zone. Through a non-invasive, front-of-nose swab of a nostril, Community Labs can provide accurate results in 24 hours. The lab, based in San Antonio, will start with 600 tests a day, scale to 12,000 tests a day, and have the potential to scale significantly in the near future.

Community Labs is about getting back to school, back to work, and back together, safely.

Why not? No other group in the country has been able to leverage innovation and technology to create COVID-19 Safe Zones and employees back to work and teachers and students back into school safely. We have innovative founders, a great partner in BioBridge Global, the ability to leverage scientists from Harvard, MIT, and UT Health-San Antonio and the desire to help San Antonio start the recovery in a stronger way than other cities. We are creating the playbook and are willing to share it with other cities.

Assurance testing, or accelerated pandemic suppression, is the strategy Community Labs promotes to identify asymptomatic “silent spreaders” and suppress the COVID-19 pandemic. Pioneered at the Broad Institute by scientists from Harvard and MIT, tactics include: testing individuals in micro-populations at least once a week, providing test results in 24 hours or less, identifying those who test positive and requiring them to quarantine for two weeks before re-testing. Those who test negative may attend school or go to work with the assurance that those around them have also tested negative.

Silent spreaders are people who don’t exhibit symptoms associated with COVID-19 infection, also called asymptomatic. Fifty percent (50%) of COVID-19 carriers are asymptomatic and can spread the disease without knowing it. We know if we can identify those asymptomatic carriers in schools and businesses, it will allow Community Labs to create COVID-19 Safety Zones allowing kids to go back to in-person learning and employees to go back to work.

Rather than partially test the entire US population; we can fully test thousands of micro-populations. A micro-population is a school, business or community organization with a known, cooperative roster of students, employees, or members.

The test that will be used by Community Labs is not a newly developed test  . It is a Thermo Fisher Scientific test that first received Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) from the FDA in March, and has been in consistent use since then. It was one of the first COVID-19 tests to be authorized for use under an EUA. As of yet, no tests for COVID-19 have been approved by the FDA — all tests in use in the US fall under FDA Emergency Use Authorization status.

Community Labs and their partner, BioBridge Global, have modified the test by validating the use of the test for asymptomatic individuals. An EUA has been submitted to the FDA for this intended use and is currently under review.

The Community Labs testing process uses a PCR test, considered the gold standard for detection of COVID-19 virus. PCR stands for polymerase chain reaction and is a lab technique that detects the genetic material of the virus.  The test has been validated and shown to attain the required FDA level for sensitivity and accuracy.

At this time, the Community Labs is working exclusively with schools, businesses and organizations – contained micro-populations. Individuals in San Antonio can find testing sites at the City of San Antonio’s website: https://covid19.sanantonio.gov/Home. However, local labs are primarily testing those who have been exposed to COVID-19 or are exhibiting symptoms.

We all want children and teachers safely in a classroom and learning. Our strategy is specifically designed to quickly test children and adults, identify the asymptomatic carriers to stop the spread of the virus, and allow children and adults to learn in a COVID-19 Safety Zone that is virus-free and safe.

Two things happened. The first was that many of us assumed this was already taking place. Then, Graham Weston, the Community Labs chairman, was actually diagnosed with COVID-19 earlier in the year, and it is believed he got the virus from someone close to him who was asymptomatic. After a little research and trying to find places that would provide a quick and high-quality test to those who were asymptomatic, an idea was born. The Broad Institute in Boston had done some work with asymptomatic screening but cannot take it to scale in a way that is needed. Leveraging their insight, scientists at BioBridge Global and UT Health-San Antonio were able to innovate a solution. With the funding from 80|20 Foundation, Kronkosky Foundation and the Tobin Endowment, Community Labs was established.

Utilizing innovative supply chain solutions, the price of each test will be materially lower than current market prices, with a goal of scaling the price to lower than $35 per test. Businesses and organizations interested in implementing accelerated pandemic suppression testing for their employees may contact Community Labs at info@community-labs.org or 210-866-6935. An initial pilot program has been established at Somerset ISD and that testing is being funded by generous donors.

Community Labs is a collaborative nonprofit organization co-founded by Graham Weston, former CEO and Chairman of Rackspace Technology (NASDAQ: RXT) and Founder of the 80|20 Foundation; J. Bruce Bugg Jr., Chairman and Trustee of The Tobin Endowment; and J. Tullos Wells, Managing Director of The Kronkosky Charitable Foundation. Weston is Chairman of Community Labs, with Bugg and Wells serving as Vice Chairmen. They provided and initial $2.5 million to launch Community Labs and are exploring other funding options and sources to be able to scale this effort

The San Antonio Safe Learning Fund has been established at the San Antonio Area Foundation to fund an initial testing pilot at Somerset ISD, with the intention to expand to other area school districts. The fund, seeded by the 80|20 Foundation, is seeking donors to support this important work. Interested donors may contact Alexandra Frey at alex@8020foundation.com.

The nasal swab is self-administered and  supervised by trained medical staff. The swab only goes into the frontal part of the nose (about 0.5”). While it is minimally invasive, it’s not as invasive as other swabs that  go deeper into the nasal cavity.

 In response to the coronavirus pandemic, the FDA allowed for the use of tests to detect  SARS-CoV-2 under Emergency Use Authorization (EUA). The test currently used by Community Labs does have authorization (EUA 200010) for symptomatic diagnosis obtained by the manufacturer. Community Labs independently validated the test for use on asymptomatic individuals, thus modifying the test’s intended use and has applied for an EUA which is currently under review by the FDA as the QualTex Laboratories SARS-CoV-2 Assay.

While the sample is self-administered at your school or business, the testing takes place at  BioBridge Global, a Community Labs partner,  that operates QualTex Laboratories. The laboratory is CLIA accredited to perform highly-complex testing as  required by the FDA to perform SARS-CoV-2 testing under “Policy for Coronavirus Disease-2019 Tests During the Public Health Emergency”.

Community Labs and their partners comply with HIPAA requirements ensuring the information you provide is secure. Due to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, we must report demographic information to applicable health departments. Specifically, the CARES Act requires “every laboratory that performs or analyzes a test that is intended to detect SARS-CoV-2 or to diagnose a possible case of COVID-19” to report the results from each such test to the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services.

Yes, as the organization facilitating the tests with Community Labs, the schools will receive individual results in order to isolate and protect as many people as possible when a positive result is identified.

Convalescent plasma is plasma that contains antibodies specific for a condition. South Texas Blood and Tissue Center, a Biobridge Global subsidiary, collects convalescent plasma from donors who are recovered from COVID-19. These donations are then  given to people who are in the hospital fighting COVID-19. Blood donors who qualify (16 and over) may be contacted to see if they are interested in donating as a part of the program. To date, over 20,000 units have been shipped to local hospitals to help treat patients fighting COVID-19.

No, only individuals who meet the minimum age requirement to qualify as a donor will be contacted. 

Yes, all testing to detect SARS-CoV-2 requires a doctor’s orders. However, due to the state of the pandemic, Dr. Alex J Lazar MD has provided a blanket prescription for individuals in Texas who are asymptomatic to ensure we are doing all we can to limit the spread of COVID-19.

You may test up to once per week if you test negative each time. If you test positive, please wait at least 14 days to avoid infecting others.

We test people of all ages. Minors must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.

Yes. Yes as long as you are in Texas and the collection takes place in Texas, the sample can be tested through Community Labs.

Waiting time in line varies. Average wait time is 10-20 minutes.

Most airlines require that you test negative and that you get tested using a PCR test within 72 hours from the moment you board the plane. We recommend you test 48-72 hours before your flight in case you have trouble accessing your results. Please contact us if you experience any issues.

Please quarantine for 14 days. You are very likely to be infectious, even if you do not have symptoms. You can test with us again after the 14 day period. Contact your healthcare provider for medical advice. Also contact anyone else you have been around within the past 14 days and let them know you've tested positive so they know to get tested as well.

"Not detected" means you tested negative. "Abnormal" would contain a blank field below it if you tested negative. "Abnormal" would contain a red "A" below it if your result says "Sars-Cov2-Positive", meaning that you tested positive.

Visit one of our testing locations and we can print your results for you.

If you received anything other than a nasal swab, then you did not test with us. If you tested at Cuellar Community Center, please contact Curative here https://curative.com/ who also tests at this location.

An antibody test is not a diagnostic test. It is not intended for people who currently are experiencing COVID-19 symptoms and does not check for the presence of the virus. Antibodies are proteins that help the body fight infections and may remain in the body for some time. Antibody tests are used to detect these antibodies to determine if a person was previously infected with the virus that causes COVID-19.

If you have symptoms, you should get tested right away through your healthcare provider. If your test returns a negative, they will likely require you to take a second PCR test for assurance.

You should immediately quarantine before you get a test. On average, it takes 4-5 days after someone is infected with COVID-19 for them to show symptoms. It is recommended to take a test 4-5 days after exposure and another test 14 days after exposure.

If you are interacting with people through your job, visiting family and friends, traveling, we recommend testing weekly for “assurance.”

According to a study done by PNAS, silent disease transmission during the presymptomatic and asymptomatic stages are responsible for more than 50% of the overall attack rate in COVID-19 outbreaks. Furthermore, such silent transmission alone can sustain outbreaks even if all symptomatic cases are immediately isolated. It is for this reason that testing is one way to lower the risk of spreading COVID-19. 

Please allow roughly 72 hours to receive your results.

This is due to the surge in testing across the community and staffing issues. This is a temporary delay, and our lab is working 24/7 to return to our standard 24-hour turnaround time as quickly as possible.