Monkeypox virions.Photo: Cynthia S. Goldsmith, Russell Regner/CDC via AP

Phlebotomists from two major labs have sparked debate after they allegedly refused to take blood from patients who are getting tested formonkeypox.

Labcorp and Quest Diagnostics have conceded that their technicians aren’t drawing blood from potential monkeypox carriers, according toCNN.

“This is absolutely inexcusable. It’s a grave dereliction of duty,” David Harvey, executive director of the National Coalition of STD Directors told the outlet. “We can’t afford a delay in diagnostic testing because commercial labs aren’t doing the right thing.”

It’s not known whether the refusal is because of the phlebotomists' personal precautions or the labs' regulations. Both labs told CNN that they are evaluating how their guidelines protect technicians.

A Quest Diagnostics spokesperson also tells PEOPLE, “Last week, wereceived approvalfrom the New York Statement of Health to provide clinical testing using our monkeypox lab-developed test, expanding testing options for patients living in the state. We continue to plan to introduce the CDC’s orthopoxvirus test during the first half of August, which will supplement testing with our current monkeypox test. While growing, demand for monkeypox testing continues to be modest and below our capacity.”

Kristen Nordlund, a CDC spokeswoman, noted to CNN, “CDC’smonkeypox isolation guidancespecifically states that people should remain isolated, except to get medical care. Obtaining a sample for testing is medical care that could lead to diagnosis or treatment if warranted.”

Labcorp executive Dr. Brian Caveney said, per the outlet that “up until now, we have typically not been doing” blood tests for potential monkeypox patients but that was “likely to change.”

He added, “(Monkeypox) is new – nobody knew what it was – some nurses and doctors are scared of it. Some of our phlebotomists have been scared – appropriately – of it.”

Meanwhile, Harvey called the labs' current decisions “a modern-day example of discrimination,” to which New York University bioethicist Arthur Caplan agreed, likening the refusals to injustices against those who are HIV positive.

“This reminds me of the olden days when people didn’t want to care for HIV patients,” he said, per the outlet.

“With monkeypox, Labcorp offers the CDC test to physicians and healthcare providers nationwide and has the ability to meet current nationwide demand using its significant transportation and logistics capabilities. Labcorp phlebotomists are trained to collect blood from patients who may have different communicable diseases including but not limited to HIV, hepatitis, COVID-19 and now monkeypox,” a spokesperson for Labcorp tells PEOPLE.

“Our priority is always to protect the health and well-being of all involved in the testing process so that everyone is confident that the established systems, processes, and protocols allow the activities to be performed safely,” the spokesperson adds.

RELATED VIDEO: California Man Details ‘Excruciatingly Painful’ Monkeypox Recovery to Show ‘How Serious This Is’

As of Thursday, the U.S. has over 7,000confirmed casesofmonkeypox, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The virus spreads through skin-to-skin contact. While that may sound similar to COVID-19,Dr. Linda Yancey, infectious disease specialist at the Memorial Hermann Health System in Houston,told PEOPLEon Thursday that “this is not a respiratory virus. It is not like COVID, which spreads primarily through the air.”

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source: people.com