AUSTIN (KXAN) – The Texas Division of Emergency Management (TDEM) launched a new tool Wednesday to help increase testing capacity, as the state broke another daily record Wednesday of COVID-19 cases.
According to Austin Public Health (APH), it is offering free COVID-19 testing, but due to an overwhelming demand, appointments may not be available until up to one – two weeks after the assessment is taken.
Due to this backlog, APH is encouraging individuals to self- isolate if symptomatic or as soon as the decision is made to get a COVID-19 test.
The overwhelming demand is causing delays at some local hospitals and clinics around Central Texas. For some Austinites, they are waiting up to two weeks for their results.
“I went on June 15 to CommUnity Care Center in Austin at the Hancock Center and they said it would take three to five days. I went with my roommate, she was in my car, so we got tested at the same time, but it took me 10 days to retrieve the results myself,” said Gaby B. (who did not want to use her full name).
That wait time resulted in time off of work and a delay in her daily workflow.
“I had a huge project we were working on and it pretty much got delayed because I couldn’t do anything from home,” said Gaby B.
Austin Public Health and CommUnity Care sites are at capacity every day and the city is encouraging people with health insurance to go through their doctors or local pharmacies.
The Texas Division of Emergency Management (TDEM) launched the Curative tests on Wednesday to increase capacity. It is an oral swab that is available at some of TDEM’s mobile testing sites.
Seth Christensen, a spokesperson for the agency, tells KXAN that the state will perform 25,000 curative tests a day. A map on Texas.gov shows you where you can get the tests and if you qualify for one.
Explore COVID-19 Test Collection Site Map
The mobile van icons on the map show which sites are active, testing availability and registration details.
TDEM says the nasal swab tests will still be available. For the average person, the agency believes, the oral swab will be less painful. The results will continue to come within two to three days.
TDEM has 900 sites, Christensen says there were 36 active sites Wednesday performing the curative tests. He said that number will change as the demand increases.
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