Michigan COVID-19 labs are again seeing delays as more people are tested

Michigan isn't unique in experiencing delays in test results, it’s happening around the country as more people seek tests and as cases (and to a lesser extent, deaths)again grow. On Tuesday, Thomas Frieden, former chief of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, criticized delays in COVID-19 test results. He also cited an analysis by the New York-based nonprofit that he leads, Resolve to Save Lives, that found not a single state tracks test turnaround times. It doesn’t matter how many thousands of tests are conducted each day in a given state. If labs can’t turn test results within a day or two, so that those who test positive can be isolated and others warned, “we really have done very little good,” Frieden told the Washington Post. On Wednesday, Wayne State University announced that it would test students moving onto campus this fall. The test is a point-in-time snapshot of an infection, Laurie Clabo, dean of its nursing school, acknowledged. But it also provides another layer of protection at the outset of the school year. “We wouldn’t move someone into a shared space if they’re COVID-positive,” she said. 

← Back to listing