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The federal government is working on delays in coronavirus testing, but the country needs to rely more on prevention, said surgeon general Dr Jerome Adams.
“It is important to know that a test result that comes back seven, 10, 14 days later does not allow us to isolate and contact the trace, which we believe is important to contain the virus, so we are. very aware. concerns about delays, ”Adams said Sunday on INFocus, a Fox news magazine show focused on Indiana.
“As a public health doctor, I want people to know that we think testing is important, but we can’t try to get out of this problem,” Adams added. “We need to rely on prevention, it’s making sure everyone wears a mask, washes their hands and watches their distance from others.”
Adams said about 50% of tests done in the United States are either at the point of care “which takes 15 minutes or less” to get results, or at hospitals “which takes 24 hours or less.”
“What we’re really talking about is the 50% of testing that is done in private labs, and right now… the average testing time across the country is now reduced to less than three days for labs. private and most private labs the tests come back within two days, ”Adams said.
“So it’s a problem – it’s a problem for some labs and some people in particular. This is an issue we are working on, but we continue to reduce these cases. ”
Asked about Dr Anthony Fauci’s comments that ‘we’re not doing very well’ compared to other countries, Adams said, ‘I think two things can be true at the same time: it can be true that a lot of people are doing the right thing and also true that we need to do better. “
Adams noted that the United States has not seen more than a million deaths that some health experts were predicting. “But that doesn’t mean we can’t and shouldn’t do more. We must remain vigilant, ”he said. According to Johns Hopkins University, more than 170,000 Americans have died from the coronavirus, although the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said 90% of cases were likely missed.
Adams blamed the spike in numbers on spring and summer fever, which prompts people to “hang out” with friends and family. “What I would tell people is that we can get over that… and come to a place where we can safely reopen.” But if people just ignore these basic public health measures, we will continue to see the spread increase and we will in fact lose choices and lose our freedom because we are going to be forced to close, ”he said.
Adams said Indianapolis “has been on our radar screen” because more than 10% of people tested for coronavirus in Marion County have had positive test results – in the red zone. The same goes for Allen County of Fort Wayne.
“We want the people of the state to know that we are concerned, but also to know that we have the tools to turn the situation around,” he said.
Prior to becoming a surgeon general, Adams was the Indiana state health commissioner.
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