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Researchers say colleges will need to test students every 2-3 days; SUNY says random tests are possible

A new study says that college students need to be tested for the Novel Coronavirus or COVID-19 every two or three days.

Scientists at Yale worked through how college campuses could reopen safely. They looked at a variety of factors, including testing frequency, accuracy, turnaround time, and total cost.

Researchers concluded that it wouldn’t be enough for any college or university to monitor students for symptoms.


Instead, they would likely need to test students every 2-3 days. Even if colleges used a low-quality test, it would avoid higher infection rates on campus.

Syracuse University says it could move to stop in-person classes at any point this year if the number of active COVID-19 cases grows beyond 200.

Meanwhile, SUNY schools are considering a move to random testing when students return to campus next month.


SUNY’s Chief Operating Officer Robert Megna said this week in a public hearing with lawmakers that random testing is a possibility.

However, no details have been released on who would administer those tests, whether they would be done on- or off-campus, and how quickly results would be returned.

SUNY officials are scrambling to come up with a plan as 6,000-7,000 students are coming from states considered hot spots.

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