SALT LAKE CITY- A multimillion-dollar coronavirus-testing contract the state of Utah signed with a startup company ended up costing significantly more per test because fewer people than expected took the tests, according to an audit released Wednesday. The agreement with Nomi Health, which also has similar contracts in Iowa and Nebraska, was for a flat fee and didn’t have a way to scale back if the number of tests was lower than planned, the audit found.

The $7.6 million contract was for up to 3,000 tests per day, which would have made them cost less than other providers, according to the Utah State Auditor. But instead there were only about 540 tests processed per day at TestUtah sites, so each one ended up costing $235 — significantly higher than the $125-per-test average of other testing companies, according to the review.

The state said it was reviewing the audit. Nomi didn’t immediately comment on the findings, which were part of a wide-ranging review of state spending in its response to the pandemic. The sometimes-critical audit comes as Republican Lt. Gov. Spencer Cox weathers criticism about the state's response to the crisis while he runs for governor. The report raised concerns about whether contracts like TestUtah were steered to tech companies that are affiliated with Silicon Slopes, a nonprofit group of tech companies that Cox and Utah Gov. Gary Herbert have “relatively close” relationships with, the audit stated.

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