Local private labs dealing with huge spike in demand for coronavirus testing

PITTSBURGH — As coronavirus cases continue to spike in Allegheny County, it’s taking longer for patients to get their test results.

Allegheny Health Network will be all over the county holding drive-up coronavirus testing. But with more than 1,000 confirmed cases in Allegheny County over the last six days, the testing is not keeping up with the demand.

“With this recent spike, it’s stressing and straining our capacity for staffing and safe locations,” Dr. Amy Crawford Faucher said.

>>>RELATED: Nearly half of new COVID-19 cases in all of Pa. are in Allegheny County

The majority of tests are processed through labs like Quest Diagnostics and LabCorp. In April, the companies had turnaround times of four to five days. In early June, that dropped to one to two days. A spike in demand now is leading to longer wait times, with Quest estimating three to five days for most patients. LabCorp estimates two to four days.

AHN’s turnaround time is about 24 hours for a coronavirus test. UPMC’s is between 12 and 24 hours. But the two hospital systems are still limiting who can get a test to those at highest risk or who have been exposed due to a nationwide shortage of supplies.

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