Lake County launches rapid COVID-19 testing as case numbers surge

LAKE COUNTY, Fla. — Floridians are dealing with long delays in receiving their COVID-19 test results, sometimes waiting up to two weeks to hear if they have the virus or not.

To help speed up the process, health officials in Lake County this week rolled out rapid testing that can get results in as little as 30 minutes.

With these rapid tests, instead of having to do a nasal or throat swab, they are done by drawing blood.

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

“We were able to find and internally test two really good rapid tests with an accuracy above 96%,” said Matt Cady with Adult Medicine. “One will test if you are currently infected, and one will test for antibodies, and the results come back in less than 30 minutes.”

Cady said he is seeing a lot of positive cases, but the majority of those testing positive are asymptomatic.

Since last week, Lake County has recorded 841 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the county’s total cases to 3,139.

Video: 130 new COVID-19 related deaths reported in Florida as state death toll nears 5,000 A dozen new COVID-19-related deaths were reported in Central Florida on Friday as the state total death toll jumped by 130 for residents and nonresidents topping 4,900.