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Crosscurrents

With COVID-19 Tests Backlogged, Long Delays Add To Confusion

Flickr user The National Guard (CC BY 2.0)
A National Guard member collects a COVID-19 test-kit specimen.

By now, over four months into the shelter-in-place ordinance, you’ve probably swapped testing stories — or been on a Zoom call featuring questions such as: How did you get an appointment? Did it hurt? How long to get the test results?

Answers to these questions and people's experiences are all over the place. To add to the confusion, Governor Gavin Newsom has announced new testing guidelines as cases continue to rise in California, and labs are becoming backlogged. Some testing sites are reporting waits as long as 14 days for results, which is about the amount of time you’re supposed to quarantine. The new rules are intended to smooth this out and ensure the most vulnerable get tested first.

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Angela Johnston is the Senior Producer of Uncuffed and an editor in the KALW newsroom. She holds a Master’s degree in journalism and graduated from KALW’s Audio Academy program. She’s worked for KALW in numerous roles - from the deputy news director, to the health and environment reporter, and she's covered everything from lead poisoning to climate change. Her work has aired on KALW, KQED, Reveal, and The Pulse. She also freelances as a producer and editor for Cosmic Standard and AFAR Media. Outside of work, she loves to swim in the bay, surf small waves on her longboard, read, backpack, cook, and garden.