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A26 U.S. NEWS
Saturday 18 april 2020
No plan in sight: Test troubles cloud Trump recovery effort

By MATTHEW PERRONE and Vendors, in response, are
MICHELLE R. SMITH restricting what hospitals
Associated Press can buy, said Dr. Robin Pa-
WASHINGTON (AP) — The tel of the Mayo Clinic's in-
United States is struggling fectious disease laboratory.
to test enough people "It's a little bit like rationing,"
to track and control the Patel said.
spread of the novel coro- In early March, Trump an-
navirus, a crucial first step nounced a plan for na-
to reopening parts of the tionwide testing via drive-
economy, which President thru sites at chains such as
Donald Trump is pushing to Walmart and Target, linked
do by May 1. by a Google-affiliated
Trump on Thursday re- website. Six weeks later, the
leased a plan to ease busi- website is a pilot program
ness restriction that hinges available in just four Califor-
on a downward trajectory nia counties. Few of the re-
of positive tests. tailers' sites have opened,
But more than a month af- and executives from com-
ter he declared, "Anybody panies including Walgreens
who wants a test, can get have said they are waiting
a test," the reality has been for direction from the fed-
much different. People re- Workers direct people as Children's National Hospital tests children and young adults for COVID-19 eral government.
port being unable to get at a drive-through (drive-in) testing site at Trinity University, Thursday, April 16, 2020, in Washington. Trump also has promoted a
tested. Labs and public Associated Press. 15-minute test developed
officials say critical supply dress shortages of swabs, the amount of testing in the For most people, the new by Abbott Laboratories as
shortages are making it im- protective gear and high- U.S. literally overnight." coronavirus causes mild or a "game changer." Fed-
possible to increase testing ly specialized laboratory "That is not the experience moderate symptoms, such eral officials initially distrib-
to the levels experts say is chemicals needed to ana- in Rhode Island," said Gov. as fever and cough that uted 15 machines to public
necessary to keep the virus lyze the virus' genetic ma- Gina Raimondo, D-R.I. clear up in two to three health labs in each of the
in check. terial. Hospitals and state Democratic Gov. Laura weeks. For some, especially 50 states and U.S. territories,
"There are places that have health departments report Kelly of Kansas, whose state older adults and people along with 250 to the Indian
enough test swabs, but not scouring the globe to se- has one of the lowest per with existing health prob- Health Service. Alaska re-
enough workers to adminis- cure orders, competing capita testing rates in the lems, it can cause more se- ceived 50.
ter them. There are places against each other and country, told CNN it has vere illness, including pneu- But governors say they
that are limiting tests be- their peers abroad in a been difficult to get test- monia, and death. didn't get enough car-
cause of the CDC criteria system that Gov. Andrew ing supplies. Gov. Jim Jus- Lab officials and health ex- tridges needed to run large
on who should get tested," Cuomo, D-N.Y., described tice, R-W.Va., a Trump ally, perts told The Associated numbers of the Abbott tests.
said Dr. Megan Ranney an as "mayhem." said testing needs to be Press that supply shortages Rhode Island received only
emergency doctor and as- "The federal government stepped up before he can have prompted them to 120, much fewer than they
sociate professor at Brown cannot wipe their hands of lift restrictions. limit who can be tested. were promised. Raimondo
University. "There's just so this and say, 'Oh, the states Jennifer Rodriguez, a phar- That can leave out people said when the state tried
many inefficiencies and are responsible for testing,'" macy technician at a ma- who have symptoms but to get more, Abbott and
problems with the way that Cuomo said Friday as he jor retail chain in California, aren't sick enough to be others that make the test
testing currently happens complained of a shortage said she was sent home hospitalized, or people who cartridges directed her to
across this country." of chemicals manufac- by her employer last week have no symptoms and the federal government,
Trump's plan envisions set- tured in China. "I don't do after coming down with might unwittingly spread which in turn told her to go
ting up "sentinel surveil- China relations. I don't do symptoms. Her company the virus. Experts say it will directly to the companies.
lance sites" that would international supply chain." would not test her, and she be crucial to test those The state has now received
screen people without Trump has denied that the spent hours on the phone people if the economy is 850 tests, far fewer than it
symptoms in locations that U.S. has fallen short, assert- trying to find a place that to reopen. Ed Thornborrow, requested, Raimondo said
serve older people or mi- ing that the U.S. has the would, she said. medical director of the Uni- Friday.Federal health of-
nority populations. Experts "most expansive and ac- The San Luis Obispo County versity of California at San ficials declined to say how
say testing would have to curate testing system any- health department can Francisco Clinical Microbi- many cartridges were ini-
increase as much as three- where in the world." Only only test 50 samples per ology Laboratory, said he tially sent to states, but said
fold to be effective. in recent days has the U.S. day, and a spokeswoman wants to run 3,000 tests per more will be available as
The plan pushes responsibil- surpassed the rate of test- said those tests are re- day, but he can only do Abbott increases produc-
ity for testing onto states. ing in South Korea, which served for people who are 100 to 250 now because he tion. The company says it is
"You know, the federal has conducted about one hospitalized, first respond- lacks enough nasal swabs. currently producing 50,000
government shouldn't be test for every 100 people. ers and those who have He works constantly to find cartridges daily.
forced to go and do every- Vice President Mike Pence had contact with people more. The U.S. bungled its initial
thing, ," Trump told report- boasted Thursday the U.S. who tested positive. Rodri- "That's what I spend most rollout due to flaws with the
ers Thursday. had completed more than guez didn't qualify. Another of my time on these days," test developed by the Cen-
But state and local officials 3 million tests, but in March clinic told her she might he said. Meghan Delaney, ters for Disease Control and
as well as lab managers he promised 5 million would have to pay $150 if it deter- chief of pathology and Prevention. Precious time
say they cannot expand be distributed by the mid- mined she did not fit its test lab medicine at Children's was wasted in February as
testing until there are more dle of that month. Pence criteria. National Hospital in Wash- the test was corrected and
supplies. told reporters Monday that "I just feel like medical work- ington, says shortages of redistributed. Private labs
This week governors, phy- if governors "would sim- ers, or even people on the chemicals known as re- at hospitals, universities and
sician groups and labora- ply activate" underused front line, they should have agents are constraining commercial companies
tory directors called on the high-capacity testing ma- some kind of priority," said how many tests her lab can weren't fully enlisted in the
Trump administration to ad- chines, "we could double Rodriguez. perform. effort until March. q