Univ. of Florida looks at testing students for COVID-19

GAINESVILLE, Fla. - University of Florida officials on Tuesday said they are considering testing 500 to 1,000 students a day for COVID-19 as the school looks at plans to reopen campus in the fall semester.

Steve Orlando, a spokesman for the university, said testing up to 1,000 students a day represents “one possible model under consideration” to allow students and faculty to safely return to campus.

“As we begin to plan and prepare for a gradual reopening of the university, we are exploring all options as part of a series of steps to welcome back faculty, staff and students to campus once local, state and federal guidelines allow us to do so and factoring in guidance from our elected officials and the (university system’s) Board of Governors,” Orlando said in an email Tuesday.

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Orlando said any university plans will likely involve “data-driven efforts to rapidly test” to locate and isolate people with COVID-19, the respiratory illness caused by the coronavirus.

All state universities shut down their campuses last month because of the virus, with students taking the remainder of their spring classes online.