4 In 10 Americans With Covid Didn’t Know If They Needed To Isolate After Testing Positive — And Many Struggle Finding Tests, Poll Finds

Topline

With Covid-19 cases soaring to record levels, many Americans have struggled to access tests and are unsure what to do when they test positive, according to a new poll by the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF), highlighting widespread confusion over new isolation guidelines and the fragile state of the country’s testing system as it buckles under omicron.   

Key Facts

Nearly half (48%) of Americans tried to get a Covid-19 test over the past month, though many struggled to access them amid overwhelming demand, according to the Kaiser poll, which was conducted January 11-23 among 1,536 U.S. adults.

Six in 10 struggled to get hold of rapid at-home tests and more than a third (35%) said it was difficult to find an in-person test, according to the poll, which was being carried out when President Joe Biden launched an initiative to send out free tests to American households. 

Overall, a third of people trying to get an at-home test said they were ultimately unable to get one, with the vast majority (91%) saying this was due to lack of availability rather than cost. 

In contrast, almost all people (89%) trying to get an in-person Covid-19 test in the past month were able to do so, though nearly a quarter (23%) said they had to wait two or more days for their test and 11% couldn’t get one at all. 

Around a fifth (19%) of adults said they had been unsure if they needed to isolate or limit their activities after they had either tested positive, had symptoms or were exposed to someone with Covid-19 in the last three months, the poll found. 

Uncertainty was greater among Americans who said they tested positive for Covid-19 in the last month, the poll found, with some 38% saying they were unsure if they needed to isolate or limit their activities. 

Tangent

Around half (49%) of Americans think the Food and Drug Administration deserves a lot or fair amount of the blame for the limited availability of Covid tests, the KFF poll found. Some 44% blame Biden and 16% test manufacturers. However, Republicans were far more likely to believe Biden deserves blame for the access issues than Democrats, 75% and 39% respectively.  

Key Background

Testing—along with isolation for those testing positive and quarantine for those who have potentially been exposed—is a crucial aspect of controlling disease outbreaks and a vital public health tool for controlling Covid-19. Two types of tests are widely used: PCR tests, which are highly accurate and widely considered the gold standard for detecting Covid, and rapid antigen tests, which are less accurate but can be taken practically anywhere and are capable of returning results in minutes. Demand for rapid tests in the U.S. has soared in line with cases and as people return to normal life but the American testing system has been unable to keep up. The availability and cost of rapid tests has, at best, been patchy and unpredictable, especially when compared to other developed nations, largely owing to FDA regulations and the country’s splintered for-profit healthcare system. In January, the Biden Administration launched an initiative to send free tests to U.S. households. 

What We Don’t Know

New Covid isolation guidelines. In December, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said most people infected with the coronavirus will only need to isolate for five days, half its previous recommendation. Other factors—such as whether or not someone has symptoms, has a compromised immune system, is on a cruise ship, has been vaccinated or works a particular job—could change this, however, as could the results of rapid tests. The guidelines, detailed, complex and lengthy as they are, have sparked confusion among the American public over what they should be doing. Experts chided the CDC for its sub-par communication, including the president of the American Medical Association, who described them as “confusing” and “risking further spread of the virus.” 

Further Reading

America’s COVID Rules Are a Dumpster Fire (Atlantic)

Most Americans Think N95 And KN95 Masks Are The Most Effective—But They Aren’t Wearing Them, Poll Finds (Forbes)

When Should You Get a COVID Test? (Scientific American)

By The Numbers: Who’s Refusing Covid Vaccinations—And Why (Forbes)

Why Some Workers Are Getting All the Covid Tests They Need (NYT)

Full coverage and live updates on the Coronavirus