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Backlog with COVID-19 test results making it harder to control spread of virus, Orange County doctor says

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — As coronavirus case numbers continue to increase in Orange County, more people are getting tested than ever before and it’s causing a huge backlog of test results.

The state said it was telling people to expect their results in 48 to 72 hours, but is now averaging a six-day turnaround.

“Some of the tests are getting late to us in part because of increased volume and it’s creating a bottleneck at the labs,” Dr. Raul Pino said.

Read: Coronavirus: Where COVID-19 testing is available in Central Florida

Pino said it’s making it even harder to control the spread of the virus because most people probably aren’t self-isolating like they’re supposed to during that time.

“In my professional opinion, and this is a personal opinion, a test that takes five days in infectious disease to come back, it becomes irrelevant,” he said.

Read: More Central Florida counties impose face mask mandates as COVID-19 cases continue to rise

Channel 9 checked with the state to see if it was addressing the delay.

A spokesperson said the state recently learned its lab Bio-Reference is dealing with a national backlog, so the state is now working with a new lab, Genetworx, to try to prevent more delays.