GREEN BAY (NBC26) — Numbers are showing Northeast Wisconsin could be emerging as the U.S. COVID-19 epicenter.
Counties and healthcare systems are scrambling to keep up with the testing demand. People were waiting three to four hours for tests at the Sunnyview Expo Center on Monday. Lines have gone down since then, said Shelley Brown-Giebel, specialist at the Winnebago County Health Department.
“It’s still not dead," she said. "But it’s not as busy as Monday.”
About 800 people are still getting tested there every day. Mondays and Tuesdays are the busiest days, but it shouldn't be that way, Brown-Giebel said.
“If you just went to a gathering over the weekend and it’s monday morning, you don’t go and get your COVID test," she said. "You need to wait that five, six days so it comes back positive if you truly are positive.”
Some local testing centers like the Sunnyview Expo Center allow you to drive up any time they're open and receive a test -- without needing to show a driver's license or a health insurance card. But if lines are long you can always try CVS, which added nine new testing sites in Wisconsin today. You just need to make an appointment first, said Ashley Pascavis, district leader for CVS.
“We are so filled up and we want to add additional sites just to make it easy," she said.
All of CVS's locations are using the self-swab nasal test now. The do-it-yourself test is the standard for most COVID testing in the state.
“Some people aren’t always expecting that when they make the appointment," said Pascavis. "It’s a really simple way to get tests done and keeping everyone as safe as possible.”
Children 12 years and older can get tested at CVS now too.
“With everyone going back to school, we wanted to make sure we were able to provide an avenue for our children that are in school to have access," said Pascavis.
If you have any symptoms, or suspect at all that you've been exposed, get a test, said Brown-Giebel.
“Testing is just one piece of the puzzle to figuring out this whole COVID pandemic," she said. "The more testing we have available the better we can paint the picture. The more knowledge we have the better we can address the problem.”
You can find a comprehensive map of all the sites in the state to get COVID-19 tests here.
