Increase in Florida COVID-19 tests causing longer turnaround for results

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — The spike in COVID-19 cases around Florida is driving more people to testing sites.

Some people who visit these sites said they are stuck waiting nearly a week for the results. State officials said people should expect their results in 48 to 72 hours, but with more tests being administered it’s averaging a six day turnaround.

Orange County health officer Dr. Raul Pino said it’s making it even harder to control the spread of the virus, as most people probably aren’t self-isolating like they’re supposed to during that extended waiting time.

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“In my professional opinion, and this is a personal opinion, a test that takes five days in infectious disease to come back, it becomes irrelevant, said Pino.”

Pino also said transmission has been happening in break rooms, and urges businesses that have them to “clean those break rooms really well.”

Researchers said Florida and Arizona should reissue stay-at-home orders to help control the rapid spread of COVID-19 in each state.

Read: Florida should reissue stay-at-home order to slow the spread of COVID-19, researchers say

According to a new tool designed by Harvard University’s Global Health Institute, the two states are the only ones with unchecked community spread, meaning there are more than 25 new cases per 100,000 people daily.

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