Is Covid testing free for healthcare workers?

As the world grapples with its second wave, some of it, including many healthcare workers, are questioning whether or not testing for Covid-19 should be free in a hospital. In this story, we take a closer look at why hospitals that charge patients $50 to get tested and receive results, while those that don’t, will likely have to offer another form of testing such as rapid antigen tests free of cost to their patients. And while the question of whether or not you should pay to get your test results is obviously a personal one that many individuals may have to answer in order to determine if they feel comfortable going to work or having people attend school.

In New York City there have been over 35,000 cases so far with more than 4,000 deaths. While the city has implemented several measures to control the spread of COVID-19, the virus continues to circulate, especially among children. Parents like Dr. Robert Kagan, who has been treating kids from birth to age 17 who is now being considered “socially isolated” due to the fact that his child was diagnosed with leukemia before the age of 10. However, while getting tested for the disease can help with identifying a patient with an underlying health condition that is potentially treatable, it can also identify anyone who may be having symptoms even without someone else seeing them. This is part of why many believe that there needs to be a way to provide free testing for everyone. But, how does that actually work? Let’s explore what the data says.

Data Source: https://covid-19curenow.xyz/

The World Health Organization (WHO) 2016 published guidance on Covid-19 testing. One of the recommendations states that countries can use mass testing in order to combat any outbreaks. Is Covid testing free for healthcare workers?, covid testing, covid, coronavirus, covid 19, The WHO recommends that countries consider creating public and voluntary options for testing using the resources they do not have available, such as community pharmacies. These pharmacies would also act as intermediaries between patients and medical professionals who will send out swab samples for testing, which can be done under supervision.

Since most countries lack enough capacity to carry out these tests, the method is meant to allow countries with few resources to test enough patients to be able to effectively combat any community transmission. To date, only 7 countries have implemented this testing protocol and have seen positive cases in their country. And while there is a lot that can happen when it comes to a large-scale testing program, the general consensus is that these types of strategies have worked well for other countries that were similarly impacted by Covid-19.

In 2017, South Korea launched its GoHealth initiative to test 50 million people across the country and the United States has already started testing more than 14 million people per person. But with no clear plan in place for widespread availability of coronavirus testing kits, the U.S. Department of Labor stated that employers were allowed to request employees to test themselves through home visits so long as they did not show symptoms or required a negative result prior to work.

So while there is still hope, this could prove to cause issues for many hospital staff members who will need to travel into the facility where they will have to test people for potential exposure. Is Covid testing free for healthcare workers?, covid testing, covid, coronavirus, covid 19, Some may face a dilemma regarding taking and giving out a test if they do not feel confident about coming back to work when they return the next day. It is however important to remember that not all vaccines are made equally and it is crucial to protect yourself and others by not exposing yourself to SARS-CoV-2.

So while testing may appear costly when compared to treatment or vaccinations, it really boils down to what you want and needs by providing an alternative option for testing. According to the CDC, the average American household with two adult adults should have access to both a primary care physician and an optometrist. That’s roughly 2,900 people. If a family has 6 children of different ages, then that equates to about 40,000 people.

Now, while this small percentage of Americans is responsible for approximately 2,800 individuals in a single household, then only 12% of America should be paying for testing if there is ever a chance that I might contract a serious case of Coronavirus outside my own family. Many of us are starting to see our families spread the disease, not just those of us who are elderly, but also those younger folks who are going through similar trauma due to job loss, illness, etc. We cannot let that keep happening because that is not safe. At the end of the day, as much as hospitals will try to make sure everything stays above water and things like testing cost nothing, there comes a time and we must be prepared.