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Lisa Wright wanted a COVID-19 test. But without one of the mobile test labs that were sent to parts of rural America that don’t have testing sites, the 70-year-old retired nurse would have had to drive an hour to get one. .
About 13,000 people live in Sumter County, Alabama’s poorest pocket. The county is used to doing without it – but County Commissioner Marcus Campbell drew the line in COVID-19 testing.
“We were a trying desert,” said Campbell. “People always asked when they heard of tests going on in other areas, ‘Why not in Sumter County? “”
Communities of color often have less access to COVID-19 testing, according to research from Johns Hopkins University. In Alabama, majority black counties tend to have fewer tests available than majority white counties. There are similar trends in Oregon, Delaware, New Mexico, and South Dakota in predominantly Hispanic and Native American counties.
Dr Jennifer Nuzzo, who works with the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, explained how desert testing increases the chances of the virus spreading.
“If you are infected, you could walk around unknowingly and spread the virus to others,” Nuzzo told CBS News, adding, “It not only increases the number of people who eventually get the virus, but also increases the likelihood that some of these people will get sick enough to be hospitalized and sick enough to die. “
Campbell said he lost two cousins to the virus, which he buried the same day. He said the experience “absolutely” motivated him to take tests in his county.
Campbell coordinated with Whatley Health Services to set up drive-thru testing in western Alabama. These mobile labs run tests two or three times a week in western Alabama – a testing wilderness is no more.
“It’s gratifying to know they can do it,” said Campbell.
Since March, more than 4,000 people have been tested and 10% have tested positive.
The Johns Hopkins University Coronavirus Resource Center has launched a new tool on its U.S. state tracking pages that for the first time provides county-level insight into the effects of COVID-19 through case data and testing measured against key demographic information, including race and poverty. level.
To see how these trends are affecting the populations of your own county, click here.
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