In an abrupt change of course from plans earlier in the month, at-home test maker Cue Health is laying off all of its employees and shutting down as of Friday, May 24.
The company, which grew to prominence during the Covid-19 pandemic as the maker of one of the only molecular at-home tests for the virus, has been teetering on the edge of insolvency for months. The shutdown, first reported by the San Diego Union-Tribune, comes just over a week after the FDA warned consumers not to use Cue’s only FDA-authorized product, a Covid-19 test kit.
Cue had previously notified 49% of its workers on May 1 that they would be laid off from the company, effective July 1. But in a WARN notice filed with California state regulators on May 20, chief human resources officer Allison Blackwell said that due to the “fluid nature of this situation,” all U.S. employees who had not already received notice of termination would be receiving one. All employees will receive their last paychecks on May 24, the notice said.
