ST. LOUIS (KMOX/AP) - The latest COVID-19 surge in Missouri has residents scrambling to get tested, but having difficulty finding a place to do it.
The small city of Winfield, just north of St. Louis, opened a state-sponsored COVID-19 testing site that had been, until recently, administering about 50 tests per week. But by 11 a.m. Wednesday, an hour after the site opened, 600 cars were waiting in line, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported, citing comments made by Winfield police to the state health department.
The traffic backup was so bad that police and city officials closed the site due to safety concerns.
Urgent care centers, pharmacies and other places offering COVID-19 tests across the state are struggling to keep up with demand.
A company that was providing free COVID-19 tests to Missouri residents announced Thursday that it ran out of tests for the month. PictureGenetics.com says to check back next month for new orders. The free nasal swab test kit arrives via FedEx within two days of placing an order.
You can find free COVID tests in your area through Castlight Health.
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Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services spokeswoman Lisa Cox says they plan to add an additional testing site in St. Louis this weekend, three sites in St. Louis next week, and one to three sites in Kansas City.
“We anticipate things will get worse before they get better,” said Dr. Hilary Babcock, a Washington University infectious disease specialist at BJC HealthCare. “The case numbers are really staggering, and are rising at a pace that we have never seen before.”
In Springfield, CoxHealth had 66 inpatient COVID-19 cases two days before Christmas. The hospital had 110 a week later, the Springfield News-Leader reported. A hospital study found that 94.6% of those hospitalized earlier this week were not vaccinated.
The Kansas City region also is being hit hard. The Kansas City Star reported that 1,809 new cases were reported in the metro area on Wednesday alone. The total includes cases in Kansas City and its suburbs in both Missouri and Kansas.
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