White House team reacts to FDA report on rapid COVID test sensitivity: PCR, antigen tests 'critical tools'

Members of the White House COVID-19 response team reacted Wednesday to new guidance from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on the sensitivity of rapid antigen tests, telling reporters that the tests' usefulness amid the pandemic has not altered.

"What the FDA was saying, that when they were looking at the sensitivity with regard to omicron, in some of the tests there appears to be somewhat of a diminution – not a disappearance, but a diminution – of the sensitivity," he said. 

"The fact that the sensitivity is diminished somewhat does not obviate the importance of the, still, advantage and usefulness of these tests under different circumstances. That was the message of the FDA. They wanted to make sure they were totally transparent in saying the sensitivity might come down a bit, but they did emphasize [that] there still is an important use of these tests."