South Carolina’s coronavirus testing numbers are some of the worst in the US, data shows
South Carolina lags behind most of the county in coronavirus testing, according to data from the Kaiser Family Foundation.
The state has so far tested 15 of every 1,000 residents for the virus that causes COVID-19, ranking South Carolina 45th among all U.S. states and territories, the data shows.
The number may actually be lower because the foundation used data published Wednesday by the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control, which showed a total of 77,482 tests done in the state. But on Thursday, DHEC corrected that number to 73,442.
“Due to a calculating error in negative tests reported, the total number of tests has decreased from yesterday,” the department said in its daily coronavirus update Thursday.
The numbers include tests from both public and private labs, according to DHEC.
Public health officials say testing is becoming increasingly important as states move to get their economies moving again. Testing is central to the White House guidelines for states to reopen.
The U.S. needs to “have enough tests to respond to the outbreaks that will inevitably occur as you try and ease your way back into the different phases,” Dr. Anthony Fauci with the White House coronavirus task force said during a recent update with the National Academy of Sciences.
But, Fauci said in the webcast last month, “Testing is an important part but it’s not the only part.” He said the country also needs to be able to identify and isolate infected people and do contact tracing to contain the virus.
More than 7,100 people have tested positive for the virus in South Carolina as of Thursday. About 9% of the tests conducted in the state came back positive.
Rhode Island, between the virus hot spots of New York City and Boston, had the highest testing rate with almost 75 people per 1,000, according to the Kaiser data. New York was second with about 53 people per 1,000.
Nationally, Kaiser said, the rate of testing is 23.6 per 1,000 people.
During a press conference this week, DHEC Director of Public Health Dr. Joan Duwve said the department has a goal of testing 2% of the population a month, about 110,000 people.
She says the state hopes to do universal testing for nursing home staff and residents in South Carolina. She also wants to expand testing for rural and minority communities..
“We know that rural and underserved areas that don’t have easy access to testing tend to have lower numbers of cases due to a lack in testing in general,” she said, according to The Sun News.
