Watauga Opportunities Makes COVID-19 Testing Supplies
Watauga Opportunities manufactures supplies used with COVID-19 testing.
The Watauga Democrat reports the local agency provides surgical and lab supplies Sarstedt. That company then sells the items across the country to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Institutes of Health, National LabCorp and others.
According to the report, back in March, the initial order for vials used in COVID-19 test kits was approximately 750,000 units.
Michal Maybee, Watauga Opportunities President, said in September the order increased to 2 million.
Maybee said by the end of December, they should reach the 10 million mark.
Watauga Opportunities still manufactures other supplies such as items for dental or orthopedics, but Maybee said production of COVID-19 vials has “taken over.”
What started as an order in March for 750,000 sample collection vials for COVID-19 test kits has turned into almost 10 million vials assembled and collected by the staff at Watauga Opportunities Inc.
Watauga Opportunities President Michael Maybee explained that WOI provides services for adults with disabilities, and houses a manufacturing operation to train people with disabilities while also using the manufacturing as a funding engine for WOI services. Approximately half of the agencyâs operating revenue comes from money made through manufacturing.
Maybee said the agency provides surgical and lab supplies to a company called Sarstedt, which then sells the manufactured items across the country to users like the the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Institutes of Health and National LabCorp. WOI receives large boxes with of the vials, and its up to them to assemble the vials and seal them in bags according to the size of the order. After the initial order