QIAGEN Completes U.S. Federal Contract to Equip Local Public Health Authorities with QIAcuity Digital PCR System for COVID-19 Surveillance

• 70% of all U.S. states now using QIAcuity for ultra-sensitive wastewater detection of SARS-CoV-2 infections

• Over 35 QIAcuity systems shipped by end-2021 as part of a U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) supply contract for COVID-19 testing solutions

• QIAcuity digital PCR applications for wastewater-based epidemiology proving to be a vital early-warning surveillance tool for authorities fighting the pandemic

HILDEN, Germany, & GERMANTOWN, Md.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--QIAGEN N.V. (NYSE: QGEN; Frankfurt Prime Standard: QIA) today announced it has completed a U.S. government contract to equip public health laboratories across the country with the QIAcuity digital PCR system to monitor the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic by testing wastewater for the presence of SARS-CoV-2 pathogens.

QIAGEN has shipped more than 35 QIAcuity systems to state and local health laboratories as part of a multi-million-dollar contract with the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) to supply COVID-19 instruments and consumables through the end of 2021.

More than 70% of all U.S. states now have at least one laboratory – either public health or privately-owned – with a QIAcuity system for wastewater surveillance. The ultra-sensitive digital PCR platform has set new standards for delivering rapid results in two hours rather than the six required by competitive systems based on a proprietary nanoplate-based system.

“This contract to QIAGEN has allowed public health laboratories to have rapid access to extraction equipment and supplies that are enabling them to do both surveillance and wastewater testing to support pandemic response,” said Scott J. Becker, M.S., Chief Executive Officer, Association of Public Health Laboratories, in Silver Springs, Maryland. “This accelerated ability has enabled public health laboratories to serve communities across the country. QIAGEN was incredibly responsive to the many needs of APHL member labs and worked tirelessly to support and address public health concerns.”

“QIAcuity is an ideal solution to test for SARS-CoV-2 pathogens in sewage samples, and QIAGEN is ready to support public health labs in the U.S. and around the world to generate important insights to complement epidemiological data,” said Thomas Schweins, Ph.D., Senior Vice President, Life Science Business Area at QIAGEN. “We are ready to help public health officials set up and operate processes for this crucial tool to fight the pandemic. Genetic surveillance is proving its value these days – and will prove to be a vital tool in the future. As COVID-19 is becoming endemic, testing needs will increasingly shift from detecting viruses to monitoring the spread of infectious diseases.”

Surveillance testing allows public authorities to collect data from broad sweeps of the population, including people who are not reflected in public-health statistics because they lack access to healthcare. It can potentially reveal dynamic changes in infections – and mutations – earlier than traditional diagnostic testing, providing public-health officials with near-real-time data about the presence and intensity of the disease.

More information about QIAGEN solutions for wastewater testing can be found here.

About QIAGEN

QIAGEN N.V., a Netherlands-based holding company, is the leading global provider of Sample to Insight solutions that enable customers to gain valuable molecular insights from samples containing the building blocks of life. Our sample technologies isolate and process DNA, RNA and proteins from blood, tissue and other materials. Assay technologies make these biomolecules visible and ready for analysis. Bioinformatics software and knowledge bases interpret data to report relevant, actionable insights. Automation solutions tie these together in seamless and cost-effective workflows. QIAGEN provides solutions to more than 500,000 customers around the world in Molecular Diagnostics (human healthcare), Applied Testing (primarily forensics), Pharma (pharma and biotech companies) and Academia (life sciences research). As of December 31, 2020, QIAGEN employed approximately 6,000 people in over 35 locations worldwide. Further information can be found at http://www.qiagen.com.

Forward-Looking Statement

Certain statements contained in this press release may be considered forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. To the extent that any of the statements contained herein relating to QIAGEN's products, collaborations markets, strategy or operating results, including without limitation its expected adjusted net sales and adjusted diluted earnings results, are forward-looking, such statements are based on current expectations and assumptions that involve a number of uncertainties and risks. Such uncertainties and risks include, but are not limited to, risks associated with management of growth and international operations (including the effects of currency fluctuations, regulatory processes and dependence on logistics), variability of operating results and allocations between customer classes, the commercial development of markets for our products to customers in academia, pharma, applied testing and molecular diagnostics; changing relationships with customers, suppliers and strategic partners; competition; rapid or unexpected changes in technologies; fluctuations in demand for QIAGEN's products (including fluctuations due to general economic conditions, the level and timing of customers' funding, budgets and other factors); our ability to obtain regulatory approval of our products; difficulties in successfully adapting QIAGEN's products to integrated solutions and producing such products; the ability of QIAGEN to identify and develop new products and to differentiate and protect our products from competitors' products; market acceptance of QIAGEN's new products and the integration of acquired technologies and businesses. For further information, please refer to the discussions in reports that QIAGEN has filed with, or furnished to, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Category: Corporate