COVID Testing Message To President Biden and Governor Hochul

I’ve been monitoring the Harlem hospital for weeks and the line for Covid testing is getting longer, 2 to 3 blocks daily and people reported waiting an average of 2.5 hours. Today, one of my neighbors waited in line for over 4 hours from 10:00am to 2:10pm. It’s unbelievable but true. I was tracking it.

I went to the hospital to find out what was going on. About 100 people were in line with children as young as 3 year old. I heard a 6 year old telling his Dad “My legs are going to fall off.” I joked with him that he’s not a robot and his legs would not fall off. He said “I’ve been waiting for too long.”

One of the hospital workers told me a lot of the staff have called out sick and many have tested positive for COVID. An administrator said, “It’s chaotic and a disaster,” speaking about the situation at the hospital.

A man standing in line with three young children ages 11, 9 and 7 said, “The Biden’s administration should send testing kits to every home. We shouldn’t have to wait in line at all!” The Harlem staff I spoke with said the same thing… “Rapid Testing” is the best way to speed the process so families wouldn’t have to stand in line in the cold with young children.

I think it would be super helpful if employers are empowered to test their staff at work or mail them the rapid test kits. That would ease the long lines and relief hospital workers who are overworked and mentally and physically exhausted. New York City is at the brink right now, especially with the shortage of essential workers and what’s the back up plan?

So, from what people are saying, mailing “Rapid Testing Kits” to homes and having “Employers Set Up Testing Sites” for their staff are one the best ways to speed things up.

We are way beyond the learning curve of how COVID spreads. It was shocking, embarrassing and unacceptable that the United States, the most advanced economy, was scrambling to provide adequate PPE for its citizens at the onset of COVID-19 crisis, that history should not be repeated with the “Rapid Testing Kits.” Every household in America should be able to get the kits by the end of January 2022

Bukola Shonuga is an independent journalist and a member of the New York Foreign Press, NYFPC.