‘This is a crisis’: Sen. Rick Scott discusses CDC, state’s response to coronavirus

ORLANDO, Fla. — Orange County has lost out on $283 million in economic activity due to the coronavirus and that number is only expected to grow.

With impacts from the coast to the Convention Center, the short-term outlook is sending major red flags.

WFTV political reporter Christopher Heath spoke with Sen. Rick Scott, who said he's hopeful that test kits will be available by the end of the week, something that could help relieve concerns.

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This comes after a monthlong delay from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which initially designed the kits itself. Then was unable to confirm results due to a glitch.

Now the government is working with public and private labs, including universities, to try and get out in front of the virus.

When the H1N1 virus hit in 2009, and Zika seven years later, the CDC quickly dispatched massive amounts of test kits. That didn't happen this time. Now, the CDC is trying to make up ground.

Read: Several Central Florida school districts cancel air-travel field trips for students amid coronavirus concerns

“I was with the director of the CDC on Saturday and what they've said is all the companies like Labcorp were coming out and there should be plenty of tests.”

Scott said the CDC's partnership with private companies, as well as public universities, should make more kits available.

“There's going to be plenty of tests by the end of this week, is what I’ve been told,” Scott said.

Watch Sen. Rick Scott’s full interview with WFTV:

Watch: Sen. Rick Scott discusses Florida's response to the coronavirus outbreak U.S. Sen. Rick Scott speaks on Florida's response to the coronavirus outbreak.

The response comes on the heels of Congress approving $8 billion in emergency funding for the CDC and other health agencies.

“And if we needed more funding, Congress is going to be a partner to make sure that they have - whether it's CDC, NIH, Homeland Security, - whatever we need. This is a crisis,” Scott said.

Many local labs are now receiving test kits. But even at full capacity, the labs will be able to run only about 100 tests per day.

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