University of Illinois wins FDA approval for saliva COVID-19 test The University of Illinois System received Emergency Use Authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Monday for its saliva-based COVID-19 test, as the statewide seven-day rolling positivity rate reached 2.4 percent. The FDA approval allows for the covidSHIELD test to expand beyond the U of I System. The saliva-based COVID-19 test has been administered more than 1.5 million times at universities in Urbana-Champaign, Chicago and Springfield since it launched in 2020, according to a news release. Gov. J.B. Pritzker says he will be dedicating $20 million in federal CARES Act funding to provide one million of the saliva-based tests to Illinoisâ 12 public universities and 48 community colleges.