On Mar. 31, 2020, the University of Minnesota announced that the Medical School transformed two research buildings to create the state’s fourth on-site testing facility, with the fastest turnaround results in Minnesota. The site was located in the neighborhood of TCF Bank Stadium lies the University’s Biomedical Discovery District.

Most of the samples, which are specialized swabs from the mouth, nose and throat of patients, arrive from the M Health Fairview system to MRF. There, a technologist logs them into their system for tracking. Another technologist, then, takes the samples to the biosafety cabinet for inactivation before a third technologist begins extracting RNA, which provides COVID-19 with its genetic instructions.

To assist the on-site testing efforts, the Medical School allocated $250,000 to purchase additional equipment needed to test not only for COVID-19 but also for special markers in COVID-19 patients that tell doctors the best way to treat them.