Here’s why Whatcom COVID test results that used to take days are now ready hours later
Whatcom County residents have been able to get their COVID-19 test results within 12 hours of being tested — a quick turnaround that is key to helping to curb the spread of the contagious respiratory illness.
That’s unlike earlier in the pandemic when it could take days or weeks to get tested and get the results.
Erika Lautenbach, director of the Whatcom County Health Department, provided that update to the Bellingham City Council on Monday, Aug. 31 — at the start of the second week of drive-thru testing at mobile sites located in each of Whatcom’s seven school districts.
The department and Whatcom Unified Command are working together to bring COVID-19 testing to residents throughout Whatcom County to help make it easier for people to get tested by removing barriers that include having to first get a doctor’s order or requiring residents in the rest of the county to drive into Bellingham.
Bellingham-based Northwest Laboratory provides the supplies and the lab services for those tests, and Lautenbach said the lab makes the fast turnaround time possible.
“It can’t be underscored enough,” Lautenbach said to The Bellingham Herald of the lab’s contributions.
In some parts of Washington state and the U.S., waits of five to seven days still exist for test results, she said.
City Council member Michael Lilliquist praised the quick turnaround locally, saying he was recently tested at a drive-thru site at 1 p.m. and had his results at midnight. He tested negative.
“This is a real testament to Northwest Laboratory,” Lautenbach said to the City Council, adding that officials felt fortunate “to have such an incredible facility right in our county.”
On the Monday that Lautenbach updated the City Council on the health department’s pandemic response, 311 people had been tested for COVID-19 at the drive-thru site at Civic Field.
The next highest numbers were at the sites in Ferndale and Blaine, where 104 people and 78 people were tested respectively on Tuesday, Sept. 1.
Testing is available by appointment, which can be done online through testdirectly.com. Or, schedule a test by calling 360-778-6075 from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily.
Getting test results within 12 hours is critical to efforts to contain the virus, Lautenbach said.
People will know if their symptoms are actually COVID-19 quickly, and it allows the health department to contact people who tested positive that much faster to provide information about the next steps, including staying away from others, and track down their close contacts so they also know to take precautions.
“That stops the spread of the disease so much quicker than if you have to wait five days,” she told The Bellingham Herald.
Lautenbach said people who do case investigations and contact tracing are now keeping pace with new infections. A combination of existing health department staff, temporary employees, surge staff from other departments and volunteers are doing the work, she said.
In June, Lautenbach said the department was overwhelmed by what was then a recent surge in COVID-19 cases and was falling behind in tracking down their close contacts.
