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U.S. NEWS Monday 19 october 2020
Millions more virus rapid tests, but are results reported?

By MATTHEW PERRONE Organization recommends
AP Health Writer countries test enough peo-
WASHINGTON (AP) — After ple to drive their percent of
struggling to ramp up coro- positives below 5%. And the
navirus testing, the U.S. can U.S. has mostly been hover-
now screen several million ing around or below that
people daily, thanks to a rate since mid-September,
growing supply of rapid a point that President Don-
tests. But the boom comes ald Trump and his top aides
with a new challenge: have touted to argue that
keeping track of the results. the nation has turned the
All U.S. testing sites are le- corner on the outbreak.
gally required to report The figure is down from a
their results, positive and peak of 22% in April.
negative, to public health But some disease-tracking
agencies. But state health specialists are skeptical.
officials say many rapid Engel said his group's mem-
tests are going unreported, bers think they aren't get-
which means some new ting all the results.
COVID-19 infections may One of the challenges to
not be counted. an accurate count: States
And the situation could get have wildly different ap-
worse, experts say. The fed- proaches. Some states
eral government is shipping In this Friday, July 17, 2020 file photo, health care workers take information from people in line at a lump all types of tests to-
more than 100 million of the walk-up COVID-19 testing site during the coronavirus pandemic in Miami Beach, Fla. gether in one report, some
Associated Press
newest rapid tests to states don't tabulate the quick
for use in public schools, two to three days to get to states are even easier to last month, undercount- antigen tests at all and oth-
assisted living centers and results. Experts pushed for use: they're about the size ing was a concern. Com- ers don't publicize their sys-
other new testing sites. more "point-of-care" rapid of a credit card and can petitors Quidel and Becton tem. Because antigen tests
"Schools certainly don't testing that could be done be developed with a few Dickinson have together are more prone to false
have the capacity to re- in doctors offices, clinics drops of chemical solution. shipped well over 35 mil- negatives and sometimes
port these tests," said Dr. and other sites to quickly Federal health officials say lion of their own quick tests require retesting, most
Jeffrey Engel of the Council find people who are infect- about half of the nation's since June. But that massive health experts say they
of State and Territorial Epi- ed, get them into quaran- daily testing capacity now influx of tests hasn't showed should be recorded and
demiologists. "If it's done at tine and stop the spread. consists of rapid tests. up in national testing num- analyzed separately. But
all it's likely going to be pa- Beginning in the summer, "It's definitely a challenge bers, which have mostly currently the vast major-
per-based, very slow and cheaper, 15-minute tests — because now we have to ranged between 750,000 ity of states do not do that
incomplete." which detect viral proteins do many more things man- and 950,000 daily tests for and post the results online.
Early in the outbreak, nearly called antigens on a nasal ually than we were with months. Besides tallying The federal government is
all U.S. testing relied on ge- swab — became available. electronic reporting," said new cases, COVID-19 test- allocating the tests to states
netic tests that could only The first versions still needed Kristen Ehresmann, of the ing numbers are used to based on their population,
be developed at high-tech to be processed using por- Minnesota Department of calculate a key metric on rather than helping them
laboratories. Even under table readers. The millions Health. Even before Ab- the outbreak: the percent- develop a strategy based
the best circumstances, of new tests from Abbott bott's newest BinaxNOW age of tests positive for CO- on the size and severity of
people had to wait about Laboratories now going out rapid tests hit the market VID-19. The World Health their outbreaks.q
Twitter blocks tweet from Trump adviser downplaying masks

By CATHY BUSSEWITZ leading by experts such as not socially distance. At-
AP Business Writer public health authorities. las added that infections
NEW YORK (AP) — Twit- In such cases, Twitter dis- exploded even with man-
ter blocked a post Sunday ables the account until its dates in Los Angeles Coun-
from an adviser to Presi- owner deletes the post in ty, Miami-Dade County,
dent Donald Trump who question. Hawaii, Alabama, the Phil-
suggested that masks do Trump has downplayed the ippines, Japan and other
not work to stop the spread importance of masks in re- places.
of the coronavirus. ducing the spread of the vi- Atlas, the former chief of
Scott Atlas, who joined rus, even after he contract- neuroradiology at Stanford
the White House in August ed the disease, which has University Medical Center
as a science adviser, had killed more than 215,000 and a fellow at Stanford's
tweeted "Masks work? NO," Americans. conservative Hoover Insti-
and said widespread use of "I don't understand why tution, has no expertise in White House coronavirus adviser Dr. Scott Atlas speaks at the
masks is not supported. the tweets were deleted," public health or infectious White House, Monday, Oct. 12, 2020, in Washington.
Associated Press
The tweet violated a Twitter Atlas said in an email, call- diseases. He has criticized
policy that prohibits sharing ing Twitter's actions cen- the coronavirus lockdowns Facebook moved quickly Biden's son, and it has not
false or misleading misin- sorship. He said his tweet and campaigned for chil- to limit the spread of an been confirmed by other
formation about COVID-19 was intended to show that dren to return to class- unverified political story publications. There have
that could lead to harm, "general population masks rooms. Some scientists view published by the conserva- been no new tweets from
a company spokesperson and mask mandates do Atlas as promoting danger- tive-leaning New York Post. the Post since Oct. 14, in-
said. The policy bans state- not work," and he clarified ous theories around "herd The story cited unverified dicating Twitter may still be
ments that have been con- that the correct policy is to immunity." emails from Democratic blocking the newspaper's
firmed to be false or mis- use masks when one can- Last week, Twitter and presidential nominee Joe tweets.q