Annette Johnson, outreach coordinator at Odyssey House Louisiana (OHL) which runs a drive-through testing site, has a consultation with a driver to see if she should be tested for the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. March 27, 2020. REUTERS/Kathleen Flynn
(Reuters) - As coronavirus infections exploded in New Orleans, state and local officials repeatedly told the Trump administration that its new drive-through testing effort wasn’t going well. Those tested often waited more than a week for results, and local officials had no information on who had been notified by a federally contracted call center, according to emails between local and federal officials reviewed by Reuters.
As deaths mounted, local officials requested details on the notifications as they increasingly fielded calls by those left in limbo - including health workers. But Washington officials largely brushed off their concerns, according to the correspondence, which has not been previously reported.
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