PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf is wrapping up his isolation after he tested positive for the coronavirus last week. The governor said his case shows the need for increased access to testing, but one expert said lawmakers should be pushing for rapid tests rather than continuing the status quo.
Wolf's positive test came from a sample taken on Tuesday last week. On both Wednesday and Thursday, he tested negative. The governor's office said Wolf's most recent test before that positive test was two weeks prior.
The governor said he never showed symptoms, which is not uncommon with COVID-19, as estimates are 50% of transmission of the virus is done by people who aren't showing symptoms.
"I think in my case what it shows is we need to always make sure we get test results quickly so the results are relevant," Wolf said.
The governor said expanding access to testing is crucial, and there are about 80,000 to 90,000 tests per day in Pennsylvania.
Harvard epidemiologist Michael Mina said the PCR test — the main test being used right now — plays an important role in diagnosing COVID-19, but when it comes to letting people know when they're infectious, especially if they have no symptoms, "It's essentially a useless test."
Mina has been pushing the federal government to lift restrictions on cheap, paper strip tests that have been proven effective and could be used in the home, rather than continuing to push PCR tests, as those PCR tests have shown they can't keep up with the virus behind COVID-19.
"It was never designed to test millions, millions of Americans. It's expensive, it's labor intensive. And the more we learn about this virus, not surprisingly, the more we recognize that the delay, even a 24- or 48-hour delay in testing — which right now is like rapid for a lot of the PCR labs — it's just not working," Mina said.
