Switch Health

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Switch Health
IndustryHealth
FoundedMarch 2020
Headquarters
Toronto
,
Canada
Area served
Canada
Key people
Marc Thomson, CEO
ServicesMedical testing
Websitewww.switchhealth.ca

Switch Health is a Canadian company that provides COVID-19 testing services. The company was founded in Toronto in 2020.

Organization[edit]

The company is led by chief executive officer Marc Thomson.[1] Other key staff include Mary Langley and Olga Jilani.[1] Board members include politician and former federal health minister Rona Ambrose.[1]

Activities and history[edit]

The company was founded in Toronto in March 2020.[2] It provides services to enable home self-testing for COVID-19 and provides testing services for organizations including the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Air Canada,[3] Ontario Health,[4] and the Government of Canada.[5]

The company's reverse transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification test was used as an alternative to Polymerase chain reaction tests.[6] In 2021, the company was criticised by Conservative Party of Canada leader Erin O’Toole who stated that "one in six of their tests have failed to deliver a test result within the 14-day quarantine period”.[7]

By February 2022, the company had 2,000 employees.[2] During 2022, the company was developing products for home testing for sexually transmitted diseases.[2]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c O'Connor, Joe (14 September 2020). "How four millennials came out of nowhere to dominate the mobile COVID-19 testing industry". Financial Post. Retrieved 2023-05-07.
  2. ^ a b c Rinaldi, Luc (2022-02-14). "How to Pivot Your Business Out of the Pandemic". Canadian Business – How to Do Business Better. Retrieved 2023-05-07.
  3. ^ "Air Canada Says Test Kits Simplify Meeting U.S. Requirements". TravelPulse. Retrieved 2023-05-07.
  4. ^ La Grassa, Jennifer (15 July 2020). "Ontario Health defends hiring private company for COVID-19 farm testing". CBC.
  5. ^ "Ottawa's bill for COVID-19 tests for travellers arriving in Canada climbs to $1.2-billion". The Globe and Mail. 2022-02-18. Retrieved 2023-05-07.
  6. ^ Burman, Dilshad (25 Nov 2021). "A traveller's warning about Air Canada-promoted Switch Health COVID-19 test kits". CityNews. Retrieved 2023-05-07.
  7. ^ "O'Toole questions federal government's contract with Switch Health for COVID-19 border testing | Watch News Videos Online". Global News. Retrieved 2023-05-07.