Rob Johnson

pnj.com

The Ebola test kits that Florida Gov. Rick Scott asked the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta to send to the Sunshine State last Sunday for distribution to 30 state hospitals can't be used for that purpose, according to the CDC.

The test material included in the kits, which were developed by U.S. Army medical personnel, are only for the 15 public health laboratories around the nation that have been approved by the Atlanta-based CDC and the National Institute of Health in Maryland.

Florida has one such facility, the State Health Laboratory in Miami, which has several kits and where personnel have been trained to use them in connection with specialized equipment not available in most hospitals, the CDC said.

Scott's press office clarified his earlier request for the kits Wednesday, acknowledging that the kits aren't for use in state hospitals. In a news release, Scott said he has reiterated his test kit request with President Barack Obama.

"We are still urging the president to fulfill our request for 30 testing kits the state has requested from the CDC and an additional 100 units of high-level protective gear."

The CDC told The News Journal that the Miami laboratory has four of the Ebola kits. Depending on how they're used, those kits could test a total of about 24 suspected cases. Florida hasn't yet had a single confirmed Ebola case.

The CDC's director of preparedness and emerging infections, Dr. Toby Merlin, told The News Journal on Wednesday that some Florida officials may have been uninformed about the requirements to use the Ebola testing materials. "I can understand how someone who did not understand the technical details of the tests thought it would be a wonderful thing to distribute to hospitals. But it requires special training and equipment."

Merlin said the Miami lab's testing capacity and skills ensure the state's readiness for the threat of the deadly Ebola virus. "Florida is well set. It has one of the first laboratories to get the test."

Kristen Mordlund, a CDC spokeswoman in Atlanta, said that Ebola screening in Florida, which is done through a blood test can be handled first in Miami and a sample can be protectively sent to her agency in Atlanta. "We would give a second opinion," she said.

Merlin added, "We are here to help the state of Florida do the testing that is necessary in public health laboratories."

The CDC has been training public health labs around the nation for months, and the Miami facility is one of only 15 that the agency has approved to do Ebola testing.