More than 550 people were tested for coronavirus at the Philadelphia region’s first drive-through testing site. NBC10 reporter Tim Furlong spoke to medical staff who took part in the site run by ChristianaCare Health System in Wilmington, Delaware.
A Delaware-based health care system gave free tests to people feeling ill at the region's first-of-its kind "drive-through testing" for the coronavirus at a location in Wilmington.
ChristianaCare opened from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Friday, March 13, for people "who have symptoms consistent with the coronavirus, which include flu-like symptoms."
Results are expected within two to five days, ChristianaCare said in a statement. It will be the first of its kind in the Philadelphia region, which has experienced a growing number of confirmed cases this week.
The drive through was in the parking lot at 601 S. Madison St., Wilmington.
Delaware has had four confirmed cases of COVID-19. The state declared a state of emergency Thursday.
The announcement comes as other states and the federal government are grappling with an inability to mass-test samples submitted by potential cases of coronavirus.
In Philadelphia, the city's top health official admitted on Thursday that no new results from 45 pending test kits submitted to Pennsylvania's state lab have been returned in "the last 36 to 48 hours."
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A city official said it was seeking help from private testing companies instead of waiting for the state lab and the federal Centers for Disease Control.
In South Korea, drive-through testing has sped up the country's ability to contain outbreaks, according to published reports.
Medical experts have widely blamed the inefficiency of federal and state testing for the mounting inability to contain outbreaks in the United States.
