Ochsner begins COVID-19 antibody testing, expands routine testing criteria

BATON ROUGE - The Ochsner Health System says it will offer voluntary coronavirus antibody testing to its employees this week.

Ochsner says it will offer voluntary antibody testing to 27,000 employees and providers across its system. The antibody test can determine if a person’s immune system has created antibodies in response to COVID-19.

Testing will be based upon the person's location, job and risk of exposure to the virus. The system says it hopes to test 20,000 per week for COVID-19 antibodies, and it plans to eventually expand the testing to patients in May.

In addition to antibody testing, Ochsner is also expanding its routine testing criteria to anyone showing symptoms, regardless of age. The change will allow for increased testing for children and patients at Ochsner Urgent Care locations.

Ochsner says it plans to test 12,000 people for the coronavirus each week.