[conspire] Testing, 1, 2, 3 (San Mateo County free testing)

[Rick Moen]

A neighbour posted something urging everyone in San Mateo County to take
advantage of free testing by appointment starting this Monday, 'so the
counties can be opened up soon!'  She provided links to Verily Life
Sciences' Project Baseline for further details.

https://www.projectbaseline.com/study/covid-19/
https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/To-re-open-California-must-test-60-000-people-15219607.php


My comment:


Thank you, Mary.  While waiting for the coffee to kick in, I attempted a
quick assessment and have some comments & concerns.  To repeat, this was
just a quick pass, so I make no pretence to be comprehensive or to not
miss things.  (Corrections are very welcome.)  Also, critical remarks
below are very much _not_ aimed at you.

1.  The Google factor.  Seems that S.M. County's testing stations
starting Monday, May 18th will (all three) be operated by Verily Life
Sciences, a subsidiary of Google/Alphabet.

a) Vagueness.  If someone says 'COVID-19 test', the first thing I want
to know is:  RT-PCR or antibody (aka serology)?  Those investigate
different concerns.  And the second thing is: Which test?  Over ten
minutes of browsing lots of pages at Project Baseline, including the
FAQ, they weren't addressing either question.  Lots of soothing wording,
but failure to answer _the very most obvious_ questions.  Finally, after
about twelve minutes of wandering around, I found on their _blog_, of
all places, a reference to 'nasal swabs' (which implies RT-PCR-type
testing for current SARS-CoV-2 viral load) and that at least some of the
testing kits are produced by 'Thermo Fisher Scientific' and 'Becton
Dickinson', with kits being then processed by Quest Diagnostics.

Tests (of either type) differ quite a lot in their quality and
characteristics.  How good are the ones Verily is offering?  No clue.
Project Baseline doesn't even say _what tests_ they are.

b) What's the product?  In the software industry, there's a now-trite
saying that if you're not certain you're the customer, check very
carefully to make sure you aren't the product.  These tests are
free-of-charge to the patient, so, gosh, what revenue source provides
the funding?  Google/Alphabet happens to be the second nosiest
corporation in the world (next to one on headquartered in Menlo Park's
baylands), whose business model is quietly but inextricably rooted in
data-mining.

Signing up for a Project Baseline test necessitates a Google Account,
which one might create for that one-time purpose:  In past times, a
Google Account could be linked to any e-mail account, such as a
throwaway webmail one, but recently Google also insists on a valid
contact telephone number (justified as for 2FA).  So, there goes
privacy.

For the above reasons, I wouldn't touch Project Baseline with a
barge-pole, personally.  I'd want (1) to either pay, so I'm the
customer, or have most or all cost covered by my HMO, whom I already
trust with my medical data.  (2) To know, in advance, exactly what test.
And frankly, I'd like to shop for and pick the test, rather than accept
what's on offer because it's 'free'.

I fully understand S.M. County leveraging Verily Life Sciences'
resources.  After all, they're overcommitted, and outsourcing was
inevitable.  But still:  wouldn't touch it with a barge-pole.