Coping with COVID: Request for more COVID-19 testing in Kansas City

Approaching three months since the announcement of the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent closures across the U.S. and world, the demand for increased testing – and access to it – has received attention from the Kansas City, Missouri Health Department.

While pop-up testing has become common, the resources provided at these sites are used up quickly. The popularity of testing sites has grown so much over the course of the pandemic that for many who are not able to arrive to the sites early are liable to not get tested due to limited resources. The Kansas City, Missouri Health Department is now pushing for more testing resources.

“The demand has been just overwhelming,” Frank Thompson, Deputy Director of the city’s health department said in an interview with KMBC. “Every test site we’ve done so far, all of the appointments are full.”

Thomas along with others in the health department would like to see more testing done and says there is an ongoing regional effort for more tests.

“I think we need more resources, we need more people out here testing, we need more general practitioners and clinics doing it as part of their practice rather than sending folks to these kinds of sites,” Thompson said to KMBC.

However, getting more tests is not the only obstacle, Thomas said. “It’s also the capacity of the labs to process those tests,” he said. “We’re continuing to have you know, 35 to 45 new cases a day,” Thompson said.

According to the COVID-19 page on the City of Kansas City, Missouri website, 25,800 people have been tested as of Thursday and around 5 percent of tests have come back positive.

For those seeking testing, the city will be holding pop-up testing at different sites each day Monday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., until June 25. Calling ahead to make an appointment is highly recommended to ensure test availability.