Complying with Governor’s Order to Report COVID-19 Lab Test Results in Texas
On July 29, 2021, Governor Greg Abbott ordered every public or private entity that is utilizing an FDA-approved test, including an emergency use authorization test, for human diagnostic purposes of COVID- 19, shall continue to submit to DSHS, as well as to the local health department, daily reports of all test results, including positive, negative, and indeterminate.
To comply with Governor Greg Abbott’s Executive Order for COVID-19 testing, all laboratories (commercial, hospital, public, or non-traditional testing facilities) conducting tests for COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2) must register with the Texas Department of State Health Services and ensure they are submitting complete and timely testing data. Complete and timely lab data is essential to COVID-19 mitigation efforts to reduce the spread of novel coronavirus infection.
Previous Submitters to DSHS
If your laboratory previously registered for Promoting Interoperability (formerly known as Meaningful Use) and are currently submitting COVID-19 data in HL7 format, you will still need to register. Additionally, you will need to reassess your submission feed to ensure you are including ALL results. All results, including positive, negative, and indeterminate results, must be reported.
New Submitters to DSHS
To comply with the Governor’s orders, DSHS is expediting an alternative method of accepting specific CSV formatted files for submitters who are unable to submit via HL7 format. During registration you will indicate the preferred method in which you intend to report.
Steps to Compliance: Registration & Onboarding
Note: Previous submitters will only need to complete registration. New submitters will need to complete both registration and onboarding.
- Registration: Please submit the online form to complete the registration process:
COVID-19 Lab Reporting Registration Form - Onboarding: For those submitting via CSV format, the onboarding process will involve setting up an account for you to access our sFTP. We will establish that you are able to connect and transfer files via that route. We will also verify your ability to submit all required data in the accepted data format. Once all of these steps are completed, your facility will be onboarded and may begin submitting daily files to DSHS.
Assessment of Reporting Laboratories
Compliance with the Governor’s Executive Order is being closely monitored and reported daily. Adherence of all Texas labs to providing complete and timely data is key to the Governor’s Strike Force plan to open Texas.
This page is being updated as new information becomes available.