ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — There were long lines at the Orange County Convention Center Thursday as people tried to make their family gatherings safer by getting tested for COVID-19.
However, health officials say that’s not a fool-proof strategy as the tests and what they may reveal about a person’s status could vary.
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In Orange County, officials at the convention center had to close off the test site at 3:30 p.m. and as many as 50 cars were turned away after they reached their limit on testing for the day.
#UPDATE @FLSERT #COVID19 Test Site @OCCC: gate is now closed for today to allow all cars on site to be processed. Gates will reopen at 9 a.m. Friday. #media staging area is at Tradeshow Blvd & Destination Pkwy. @WESH @news6wkmg @WFTV @MyNews13 @fox35orlando @Telemundo31 pic.twitter.com/XnQMYOgcSk
— Florida Association of Public Information Officers (@FloridaPIOs) November 19, 2020
Some in the line said they anticipated the long wait.
READ: Orange County health officials in “crisis mode” to keep up with contact tracing
“Last time we were here we waited almost two hours,” one man said.
Due to the high demand, Orange County is adding testing on the weekends, but all the different sites offer different kinds of tests, and it’s important to pick a test site based on the test that’s needed.
For example, antibody tests are best about four weeks after exposure to the virus, or two three weeks after symptoms first emerge.
On the other hand, the polymerise chain reaction, or PCR test, has a better chance of detecting the virus even before a person is experiencing any symptoms.
Epidemiologist Alvina Chu says the PCR is considered the gold standard in testing, but it doesn’t mean the other is unreliable.
READ: Orange County health officials in “crisis mode” to keep up with contact tracing
Regardless of the test a person gets, doctors say isolation between receiving results and attending gatherings with loved ones is key.
A list of test sites in Orange County can be found here.
Cox Media Group
