’I was gasping for air’: Woman says she was denied coronavirus test despite severe symptoms

PITTSBURGH — A Pittsburgh woman is sharing her story after she said she was denied a COVID-19 test despite having severe symptoms and waiting in line for hours.

Lily Abreu, who is an opera singer and teaches at Carnegie Mellon University, said she was admitted to the hospital three days ago because of her symptoms of shortness of breath and chest pain. However, not much was done.

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Abreu said her doctor told her she probably had a viral infection but that they did not have any coronavirus test kits at that hospital. So, she was later released and told the CDC would contact her about getting a test.

According to Abreu, that didn’t happen and she didn’t feel better, so she drove to the Pittsburgh Zoo parking lot Monday morning and waited in line for hours – only to be turned away.

An infectious disease doctor told Channel 11 being turned away from getting a coronavirus test is not uncommon right now. He said there will come a time where people won’t even need a test because it will be so common that doctors will be able to diagnose it based off symptoms alone.

Watch the video above as Abreu shares her story with Channel 11’s Michele Newell.

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