The Trump administration says it will no longer directly run virus testing sites, which it had been doing in hard-hit parts of the country, opting instead to 'transition' control of the last of its 13 sites to the states, including seven in Texas.
Kevin Dietsch/Pool via Reuters, FILE
Still, the move alarmed some lawmakers and prompted swift pushback from at least one local Texas county that warned demand for testing was on the rise and federally backed sites were at capacity.has expressed displeasure with the increased rate of testing nationwide because, he says, it causes case numbers to rise and make the U.S. health crisis look bad. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Wednesday predicted as many as 150,000 U.S. deaths related to the virus by July 18.
He said the federal government had set up the 41 sites early on in the pandemic as a stopgap measure until local doctors, pharmacies and other retail sites could take over. The primary difference, he said, is that the states -- not the federal government -- will control the sites. "In my opinion, this is not a story" because it represents a"small fraction" of test sites, he added.
Dr. Umair Shah, the executive director of the Harris County Public Health Department in Texas, has already asked the government to hold off on any changes until Aug. 30.
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