Coronavirus tests remain limited in Merced County, statewide. This is who can be tested
With the cold, flu and allergies still in season, many sick individuals want to ensure that their typical afflictions are not coronavirus.
In Merced County, limited supplies of testing kits coupled with the region’s preexisting medical provider shortage has restricted the ability to conduct tests.
Commercial labs recently were approved to test for coronavirus, allowing companies like LabCorp or Quest Diagnostics to screen for the infection. But without testing kits, the situation has not improved as much as officials hoped.
“The number of tests remains quite low,” said Merced County Director of Public Health Rebecca Nanyonjo-Kemp at a Merced City Council meeting Monday. This has led to an underrepresentation in the data of positive COVID-19 cases, she said.
“There are definitely more cases than we have confirmed numbers for because of the limitations of the testing kits to test people,” said Nanyonjo-Kemp.
The situation may soon change, as Quest Diagnostics and LabCorp said they will be able to do 10,000 daily tests by the end of this week.
Merced County has no cofirmed COVID-19 cases as of Tuesday, March 17. A total of 24 individuals have been tested through the public health system, all with negative results.
The county will hold a virtual town hall Wednesday from 7 to 8 p.m. to answer questions about COVID-19. It can be viewed live on facebook.com/mercedcounty or on Channel 96 (Comcast) and Channel 99 (AT&T). Residents can also sign up for updates at countyofmerced.com/coronavirus
Here’s what you need to know if you want to be tested for coronavirus — and whether you actually will be able to get tested.
Who can be tested?
High-risk individuals, such as the elderly and immunocompromised, as well as those exposed to confirmed COVID-19 cases are prioritized for testing by public health.
This includes individuals with symptoms who have traveled to a geographic region with widespread cases or those who exhibit severe symptoms mandating hospitalization.
Symptoms include fever, cough, difficulty breathing, and severe illness.
Lower-risk patients with mild symptoms can be tested if referred by a physician. Medical providers are advised to use their judgment to determine if a patient should be tested.
Those not showing COVID-19 symptoms are not currently able to be tested.
However, symptoms can take as little as two days to as long as 14 days to appear after exposure.
Asymptomatic “superspreaders” of coronavirus have also been identified, Nanyonjo-Kemp said. These individuals show no symptoms of being ill, and unknowingly spread the infection.
Clinicians are advised to use their judgment to determine if a patient has signs and symptoms compatible with COVID-19 and whether they should be tested. Merced County is running COVID-19 tests seven days a week with a turnaround time of 5-7 days.
How to get tested
The first step to being tested is contacting your medical provider. Your provider will decide whether you meet the criteria to be tested by public health or a commercial lab.
If you qualify to be tested by public health, your provider will coordinate with public health to collect your specimen and send it to a public health lab. Those tested through a public health lab are typically higher risk patients.
If you do not meet public health testing criteria, you may be tested through a commercial lab. The provider must order the test through the lab, collect the specimen and send it to the lab for examination. Lower risk patients are usually tested through commercial labs.
Providers may be limited in performing tests on account of not having necessary protective equipment or a contract with a lab able to perform COVID-19 testing.
If a provider is unable to order testing for a patient, it is because tests are not currently available for those who are not severely ill.
Testing is not available at this time at the Merced County Public Health Department, nor can individuals go straight to a lab or emergency room for testing.
Once tested, patients are urged to return home and self-isolate at least until results are available.
Daily updates to this information and resources can be found on the county’s website.
This story was originally published March 18, 2020 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Coronavirus tests remain limited in Merced County, statewide. This is who can be tested."
