Demand for COVID-19 testing rises as Orange County positivity rate tops 5%

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — Demand for COVID-19 testing is on the rise in Orange County ahead of the Christmas holiday.

Barnett Park hit its testing capacity at 1:30 p.m. on Monday with people waiting in line for hours to get their tests.

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Milagro Lira was one of the hundreds who waited in line.

Lira said she isn’t showing symptoms, but she wanted to get checked anyway before Christmas.

READ: Orange County drive-thru COVID-19 vaccination, testing site now open through January

“We wanted to get tested because we’re having a big party, a family reunion so we want to be responsible and come here to see if we have it,” Lira said.

The demand comes as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data shows cases are on the rise across the state.

READ: Coronavirus: 44 people test positive for COVID-19 aboard Royal Caribbean cruise ship

At the beginning of the month, Florida was averaging 1,500 cases a day. This past week, data shows it’s more than 3,500 cases.

In Orange County, 1,412 people tested positive, bringing the positivity rate just above 5%.

READ: Omicron: Israel to ban travel to US, Canada as variant spreads

“I think the pronounced increase in cases is probably from the transmissible, omicron variant that is also very good at evading certain aspects of our immune system,” said USF associate professor of epidemiologist Jason Salemi.

Salemi said masks and avoiding dense crowds is something people need to consider again.

READ: Omicron variant may require fourth dose of the Pfizer vaccine, company’s CEO says

He said even though omicron isn’t expected to be as deadly as delta yet, the spread could be two or three times higher and hospitalizations may still increase.

Orange County officials said they’re keeping their options open for now and encouraging everyone to get vaccinated.

VIDEO: Orange County expanding COVID-19 vaccination, testing through next month Orange County is extending and expanding its free COVID-19 vaccination and testing through the end of January.

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