TAMPA, Fla. — The above image is a file photo. Click here to find places you can get a coronavirus test in the Tampa Bay area.
More than 1.6 million Floridians have been tested for the coronavirus.
But some people who want a test are being told the locations are out of them. A woman gave us a call after she spent an entire day trying to find a place to get her father tested.
Whitney Brewer tells us two Fast Track locations in Tampa told them they were out.
They couldn't get an appointment at CVS. Since you have to sign up online, a nearby location showed availability, but once you filled out all the info it said it wasn't available anymore, nor for the next few days.
Her father was admitted to the emergency room, where he got a test. She got one as well. They're waiting for their results.
Brewer said her father had some mild symptoms and had been exposed to someone who had tested positive.
"It's shocking that testing is so hard to come by. How is it that we haven't figured out how to get a test available to the public?" says Brewer.
So we made some calls and tried to help figure this out for you if you want to get tested.
TGH gave us this statement:
“We are seeing a sharp increase in the number of people coming to our Fast Track Urgent Care centers for COVID-19 tests. Whether a patient receives a test, and which test a patient receives, depends upon that patient’s individual risk, exposure, symptoms and situation. Test supplies as well as our supply chain are currently in good standing, partly because we are limiting the number of daily tests done at each Fast Track location. Turnaround times for non-rapid COVID tests are sent to a third-party vendor, but have been averaging five days to produce results. It is important that people do not go to local emergency rooms solely for COVID testing. In many cases, patients are coming in and requesting tests when they are low-risk or not eligible based upon the timing of their potential exposure.”
CVS says there have not been any issues with tests not being available. It says it has the capability to do up to 50 tests per day, per site. You have to schedule an appointment and meet CDC guidelines in order to get one.
- Coronavirus in Florida: Where we stand with cases, deaths and hospitalizations
- As COVID-19 cases continue to climb in Florida, doctor breaks down 3 things to do right now
- 'I'm fed up': 88-year-old woman accused of shooting man she says was going to rob her liquor store
- This big cloud of dust heading toward Tampa Bay could mean spectacular sunsets and unlikely hurricane chances for now
- Face masks now required in some areas of Tampa Bay
►Stay In the Know! Sign up now for the Brightside Blend Newsletter