The Trump administration official in charge of the country’s COVID-19 testing strategy said Thursday that the U.S. is doing enough testing and removing critics who say otherwise.
“It’s just a false statement – and I’m tired of hearing it from people who are not involved in the system – that we need millions of tests every day,” Adm said. Brett Giroir, Assistant Secretary to Health and Human Services, on an interview with reporters.
“If that were true, we would not reverse the outbreaks we have,” he added.
Some experts question whether the rate of infections in the US is really slower, noting a drop in tests in the last few weeks that may prove how widespread the virus is.
The U.S. conducted an average of 740,000 tests per day on Tuesday, according to the COVID Tracking Project, a decline of more than 100,000 daily tests compared to two weeks ago.
Giroir instead noted a drop in the percentage of tests returning positive, claiming that if the US did not do enough tests, that figure would increase.
“We are now doing the appropriate number of tests to reduce the spread, flatten the curve, save lives,” Giroir said. “You beat the virus through smart policies supplemented by strategic testing. You do not beat the virus by hunting everyone every time. “
Strategic testing means that everyone is testing in nursing homes and those with COVID-19 hospitals, and surveillance tests at public health labs designed to spot outbreaks, Giroir said.
“The people who paddle numbers are spectators, not part of the system. They do not understand how this should be used strategically, ‘he said.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, the US has conducted nearly 64 million tests, according to the COVID Tracking Project.
An analysis by The New York Times, based on methodology from the Harvard Global Health Institute, estimates the US must perform at least 1.5 million tests a day to stay ahead of the virus and safely open schools and the economy.
Giroir also addressed the lag time at commercial labs, which are taking longer to return test results due to rising demand in the South and West, two regions of the country that have seen a spike in cases in recent weeks.
He said turnaround times are improving and people who need quick test results, such as nursing home residents, are getting them.
Commercial labs represented by the American Clinical Laboratory Association return 80 percent of test results within three days, and 90 percent of test results within five days, Giroir said.
“I would venture to say that those who are out for five days are tested who probably should not have ordered in the first place because they are not prioritized,” Giroir said.
Giroir has previously said that getting people checked before going on holiday is a lower priority.
Some experts argue that the U.S. must conduct widespread tests every day of millions of people with cheaper, faster tests that can be used at home before people go to work, school or other areas where they run the risk of infecting others.
Giroir said he expects the next few months to see faster, cheaper tests on the market, but “these are not the 100 million tests a day you do at home.”
“If we had a perfect home test, that would be great. We’re all looking for that. But we do not have that at the moment, “he said. It will be some kind of medical supervision as an urgent test, with probably at a point of concern. “
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