SEATTLE — How do you find out whether you have coronavirus if you have some of the symptoms? A number of people are coming forward with their frustrations about how hard it is to get a coronavirus test in the Seattle area.
A Twitter thread, now shared more than tens of thousands of times, starts with the words: "I live in Seattle, I have all the symptoms of COVID-19." The author goes on to say that they have a history of chronic bronchitis and they work with physical therapy patients who are 65 years and older, some with chronic illnesses.
They decided to be responsible and get tested.
In a series of tweets, the person explains that first there was an unsuccessful call to a hotline that led to being placed on hold for 40 minutes. Then calls to doctors that led to a runaround, and eventually, the person was told they do not qualify for testing because they haven't been out of the country or had contact with others who have tested positive.
Under current testing criteria:
- People who have a fever or lower respiratory symptoms and had close contact with a laboratory-confirmed coronavirus case within 14 days of symptom onset, can be tested.
- People who are showing symptoms and have traveled to an affected area within 14 days of onset, can be tested.
- People who have coronavirus symptoms that require hospitalization and there is no alternative explanatory diagnosis, can be tested.
- Testing can also happen if a local health officer requests it.
Tuesday morning, Gov. Jay Inslee said he wants to see more flexibility on who gets tested.
"We'll be in some discussions with the federal government about that because now we have additional capacity. There are some of the rules that the federal government still has that we're going to ask the federal government to liberalize so we can actually get more testing going," said Inslee. "We may have this problem solved shortly."
Currently, the state lab in Shoreline is able to do about 200 tests a day. The University of Washington began testing on Monday with the initial capacity for about 100 tests a day.
Dr. Kathy Lofy, the state health officer, said the department knows coronavirus is spreading in King County, Snohomish County and possibly other counties too.
"The best advice for people who have mild illness, first of all, is just to stay away from other people. And you know to stay home and to rest," said Dr. Lofy.
What are coronavirus symptoms?
The symptoms of coronavirus are similar to the flu or colds. Symptoms include a fever, cough, and shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, according to the Washington State Department of Health.
The severity of symptoms ranges significantly. Some cases are very mild with symptoms similar to the common cold, and some cases are more like severe pneumonia that require hospitalization.
Most deaths have been reported in older adults who had other health conditions, according to DOH.
Symptoms may appear as soon as two days after being exposed to the coronavirus or as long as 14 days.