Maybe Homerdog would do this again:
1 Like
This service was designed specifically for what you need. It tests asymptomatic, unexposed people who want to do elective activities. Itâs expensive because the turn time is guaranteed. It will cost less than a single book and get her through the door. To lie is not only unethical, it pushes someone who has been exposed, or is symptomatic further down the line. If it were me, Iâd pay up, be happy for the service, and move forward. YMMV.
9 Likes
And CT reaches an 18% positivity rate. Great.NOT.
And this state is one of the highly vaccinated ones.
Going back to college is not going to the Bahamas. Sheâs going to school. She would not be getting the test otherwise. I know a LOT of people who got free PCRs before going on vacation in Dec. itâs just that, now, testing is more scarce.
My son just got an email this afternoon that he needed a negative test within 72 hours of arrival back on campus. He returns a week from Saturday. Fortunately our county and state health departments have several local testing clinics. When he told me about the email, I went online and was easily able to schedule an appointment for him a week from today. There were 158 appointments open/available that day. We used the same testing site last year - they do a rapid antigen and a PCR. PCR results come back in 24 hours or less. They also do walk-in testing. Normally, there is no line for that, but the holidays are always busy. I know this week the line has been crazy for walk-ins.
Though I think with rapidly spreading omicron there will continue to be high demand for the testing sites, I imagine the long walk in lines will abate a bit after the post-holiday testing.
Does your local government not provide any testing sites? Between our county and state run locations, we have at least five within a 10 minute drive.
2 Likes
You are incredibly lucky. We have nothing like that near us. Even our doctor office has âcentralizedâ testing among all its related offices and itâs located about a 20 minute drive away at a mall.
We are in Illinois. I will keep checking for appointments for 1/20 which is when she would need one. Iâve tried every drug store and every urgent care within 50 miles. When the dates come up (through 1/6 so far) there are zero appointments available. I called three urgent cares and they said no walk ins. They have a large percent of workers calling in sick and can only do appointments. Iâm trying to talk to her doctor now and see what she can do. I only spoke to the nurse who told me the âsymptomaticâ answer.
I know people who cheat on their taxes. It doesnât make it right.
At the end of the day, youâll be faced with three scenarios, sheâll get in, youâll lie to get her in, or youâll pay someone, somewhere for the expedited service to get her back to school. The first is awesome. The second might cost someone their life. The third is a first world problem.
Iâd much rather be forking over two hundred bucks than getting a free test because I had Covid symptoms.
4 Likes
I hope your doctor will make an exception since itâs school related and you could book the appointment now so theyâre able to accommodate both you and sick patients on the 20th. Thatâs pretty much the way pediatricians workâŠthey have to balance well and sick patient needs everyday.
Also, could you check with your insurance company about whether theyâll reimburse you for the PCR test? I seem to recall something about that a few weeks ago but never heard whether it was actually implemented.
Iâm still waiting to hear if my Dâs school will require return testing and she starts Jan 10th. Iâm fully prepared to pay for a test because the school will really jam us on timing if they wait much longer to announce.
Iâm sure youâre not the only Cornell family with this problem. The University should acknowledge it and be more flexible.
2 Likes
CT also saw a 15.5% increase in hospitalizations in one day. Pales compared to NYC: 770 new hospitalizations, a 32% increase in one day. Positivity rate is now 21.7%.
I cannot imagine what it is like to work in a hospital at the moment.
In the state of Michigan, we have walk in Covid testing at certain rest areas. Just trying to think of an off beat place to look for a test.
3 Likes
Ditto here in WA - there are drive-through county and state-run sites.
This is what we would do to go to Canada - pay for rapid PCR when we arrive at the border.
1 Like
Whatâs wrong with getting a free PCR test?
1 Like
Thereâs nothing wrong with it. If your healthcare system is so inundated that you canât get it unless you have symptomatic disease, and you lie about your symptoms, thatâs a problem.
13 Likes
understand, but I guess I didnât read homerâs post that way.
S/he posted that their daughterâs doctor would not provide a test to asymptomatic patients. (Which doesnât surprise me, since our primary care doc wonât either.) That said, our local clinics and the county are still offering pcr tests to all comers, frequently with same-day appointments, so our healthcare system is not âinundated,â at least for testing; availability of hospital beds are another matter. Perhaps I missed it, but did Homer also say no free tests anywhere within a reasonable drive?
I donât know what youâre saying. The people who tested before going on vacation didnât lie. Before the last few weeks, one could get a PCR test free for travel purposes. I just donât think anyone should have to pay and certainly not a student who is getting tested so she doesnât bring Covid to a college campus.
Obviously, someone pays, since testing costs more than $0 to provide. The someone may be the government (âsocialized medicineâ?), your medical insurance company (indirectly paid by your employer, the government, or you), your employer or school, or you directly. Of course, the way medical care in the US is disjointed in terms of how it is paid for, it is no surprise that different people or the same people at different times or places may encounter different ways to pay for COVID-19 testing.
If you have lived in the US for a while, you should know that medical care in the US is often expensive, often with expensive surprises to the user, even if much of it is subsidized by the government (e.g. free COVID-19 vaccines) or paid by your employer.
7 Likes
Well, you can all relax. Her doctor agreed to get her an appointment for a PCR before return to school.
9 Likes