Americans are testing positive for the coronavirus in record numbers across the United States, and the surge in cases is slowing the length of testing.
Laboratories across the country are now facing what appears to be almost "endless" demand, says one expert.
"We really need to improve our processing times, mainly in areas and counties with epidemics," said Admiral Brett Giroir, a member of the White House coronavirus task force.
As the country approaches 4 million cases, Trump has repeatedly responded by saying that the large number of cases in the United States is proof of the country's success in testing. But according to CNN fact-check reports, Trump's own officials and his Republican allies have acknowledged that it is not true that an increasing number of tests are the reason the number of cases has exploded over last month.
Telling proof that the spike is genuine: The percentage of people testing positive, a key measure of the true spread of the virus, has also increased.
Giroir, who is leading testing efforts in the United States, said yesterday there were probably fewer cases compared to April due to more testing, but "there is no doubt that we have a push in this. moment. We approach this with extreme seriousness. "
Giroir said yesterday that in June, states "really smashed" their testing targets of more than 16 million tests, and are now regularly performing 750,000 to 800,000 tests per day.
Speaking at a hearing on Capitol Hill on July 2, Giroir told lawmakers the United States has performed over 35 million Covid-19 tests and is now performing an average of 'over 550,000 tests per day' . Regarding the national stock, Giroir said he estimates the country will have the capacity to perform 40 to 50 million tests per month by the fall.
But even those current numbers are far lower than the number of tests experts have said the United States should do now. In early May, a team from the Harvard Global Health Institute said the United States should test at least 900,000 people a day by May 15.
According to another group of experts, whose work was also supported by the Rockefeller Foundation, the United States had to deliver at least 5 million tests per day in early June to begin the reopening. He said up to 20 million tests per day would be needed to fully remobilize the economy, ideally by the end of July.
The "Roadmap for Pandemic Resilience," published by the Edmond J. Safra Ethics Center at Harvard University, asserts that without widespread testing, national and local authorities will be caught in cycles of opening and then closing. repression of trade and free movement.
According to Covid-19 test data from the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, last updated Monday:
- More than 48 million Covid-19 tests have been reported in the United States. The CDC's dashboard notes that the agency includes both viral tests and antibody tests in its test data.
- More than 4.5 million of these tests have been positive.
Remember: Viral tests tell you if you currently have an infection with the virus that causes Covid-19. Antibody blood tests check for the presence of antibodies, which show if you have ever had an infection with the virus. These numbers represent the number of tests performed and a single person may have been tested more than once.
With reporting from CNN's Amanda Watts, Daniel DaleHolmes Lybrand
