SUBMITTED PHOTO -- Ichor Blood Services, a private mobile lab collection service company, has plans to make serology testing available in Medicine Hat for a fee.
gslade@medicinehatnews.com@MHNGillianSlade
A private mobile lab collection service that announced in July it had plans to expand into Medicine Hat, has now put those plans on hold.
Ichor Blood Services was taking bookings for $195 serology tests in Calgary, Edmonton and Toronto, with plans to expand to Medicine Hat, CEO Mike Kuzmickas told the News in July. Ichor is legally allowed to offer the test for a fee because the laboratory work is being done in the U.S.
It also hoped to soon have permission to offer its services in Medicine Hat for regular lab work such as urine and blood tests ordered by your family doctor.
Kuzmickas explained that there are people who would like the option of someone coming to their own home to collect samples for lab work. They would rather not have to wait in a waiting room with others, particularly with the threat of COVID-19, and they are willing to pay for that option. Some have a compromised immune system and do not want the risk of sitting in a waiting room with others.
A spokesperson for Ichor told the News this week that the results of the initial outreach in Medicine Hat showed that there was “limited” interest.
“Expansion efforts to smaller regions in Alberta have been put on a short term hold since they are in the process of working with an Alberta-based lab to provide samples to for testing,” a spokesperson said in an email.
