Federal Government allows more coronavirus screening--Florida says it won't test more people

[Mrs. Overall]

Federal rules changed to allow more testing for coronavirus. Florida isn’t going to follow them.

https://www.sun-sentinel.com/coronavirus/fl-ne-coronavirus-testing-20200305-2lojh3w6zvhsxon7ek222etupa-story.html

Florida will not follow new national guidelines that allow doctors to order tests for anybody they suspect of having the new coronavirus, according to health care providers briefed on the state’s plan.

The federal changes allow doctors to test more people faster to contain the spread of the highly contagious virus.

Instead, Florida’s health leaders advised doctors to order tests only for people who fit a more narrow criteria: a history of travel to a high-risk area, or close contact with a confirmed coronavirus patient within 14 days of showing symptoms.

Why? Florida officials are concerned the state’s three labs — in Miami, Jacksonville and Tampa — would be overwhelmed by the number of tests, slowing the entire process.

[Miguelito Loveless]

1. Gosh we can't have that.

It might cause bad stories in the newspaper.

So much easier to just ignore the problem.

[dewsgirl]

2. Of course my state refuses to test, this will not end well.

[SoCalNative]

4. Not with all of the cruise ships

that go in and out of various ports around the state.

[dewsgirl]

6. I know, I have been assuming due to the ports, there is community

spread throughout the state already, if they are refusing to test we are in seriously huge danger.

[Leghorn21]

3. Hey Mrs. O - I just read a whole lotta posts about how COVID19 really is a deep state hoax

Joe M @StormIsUponUs

“Deep State Big Tech lending their names to the fake news panic push to make it seem like #Coronavirus is closing in. A scared public is like putty in their hands. Why no reported infections in Harley Davidson or MyPillow? Paleeze.”

“Google, Amazon and now Facebook.

The Coronavirus has taken an odd liking to nursing homes and Big Tech.”

...................

Post after post agrees with this guy, and I’m like WUT

Hey, I hope they’re right, I hope all the people in Wuhan and Iran and Kirkland are just a bunch of crisis actors funded by Soros and that we’ll all be fine, just fine.

[dewsgirl]

5. This is all so very bad, we are going to end up looking like

Wuhan.

[Leghorn21]

8. Yes, between botched "preparations" and Q telling their people it's not real...this could get

rough really quick, as you well know!!! Poor Wuhan had virtually no notice before the city went into lock down, but we’ve had plenty of warning and...I dunno, it’s apparently wasted on a large segment of American Q-followers

[dewsgirl]

12. It's not just them. TBH I knew you wouldn't, but I assumed

someone would come along and jump on my post telling me how wrong I am...I truly with every fiber of my being hope we are wrong.

[Midnightwalk]

7. Answer should be to ramp up labs

In Sarasota, where one of the Florida cases has been confirmed, doctors are pushing hard for expanded testing. Nearly a dozen patients at Sarasota Memorial Hospital are waiting for coronavirus test results, and doctors at the facility are saying they want to test patients themselves instead of sending the samples to the Department of Health’s Tampa lab.

I don’t know how hard it is for typical labs to perform the testing, but it seems like more than three labs in the state should be able to handle it.

The harsh choices are to rapidly ramp up testing, or quarantine a lot of people unnecessarily. Maybe a combo of the two.

The alternative is to let the infection spread. Unchecked it will grow exponentially. We shouldn’t be fumbling around thinking we can adjust if things get out of hand.

Then again the chief idiot says going to work is almost a cure...

[Leghorn21]

9. Yeah, DUH, Midnight!! Ramp up and do the best you can, that would produce more tests than

NONE!!!!!

[procon]

10. Florida's large retired and senior population may

have the opposite view. There's a lot of very vocal seniors that vote and call their political reps, who will demand access to testing as one of the most at risk groups.

Florida's govt may have to open testing because their citizens will demand it.

[helpisontheway]

11. I think they don't want to know because of tourism

They will lose money due to tourists at Disney and the other parks. Plus all of the ships that leave from Florida.

[Roland99]

13. But South Korea can handle massive testing

This is why elections matter!

[bluestarone]

14. THIS 100%

VOTE THEM OUT!!!!

[mshasta]

15. Florida....God's waiting room

What can go wrong?! ... seniors, bad healthcare , republican state, my gun first , don’t tell me what to do, Soap are for pussys .

[Crunchy Frog]

16. Better avoid that state like the plague pit that it is.

[Baked Potato]

17. Once they figure out how to make profit off the tests, they will open the gates.

Got to get the infrastructure in place.