DENVER (KDVR) — Colorado is falling behind on COVID-19 testing, according to the Colorado Public Interest Group (CoPIRG), a left-leaning nonprofit.
A Brown University School of Public Health model indicates that COVID-19 testing in Colorado is 50% below the suppression target.
“The virus is spreading like wildfire, but our testing capacity has increased at a glacial pace. We’re calling on Governor Polis to ramp up testing but the state needs federal support to make it happen. Failing to widely test for COVID-19 puts everyone in Colorado at greater risk and prolongs economic damage,” said Allison Conwell, an advocate with CoPIRG.
CoPIRG’s D+ grade for Colorado comes from a decrease in testing. Testing has gone down from 869 daily tests per 100,000 people in early December to 616 daily tests per 100,000 people at the end of January on average, according to CoPIRG.
The steps are supported by CoPIRG:
- Sign a petition to urge Congress to provide additional funding and testing infrastructure.
- Increasing the numbers of testing locations, drive-through testing sites, walk-up sites and mobile testing units that go to higher-risk settings such as churches, nursing homes, meat-packing factories and schools.
- Launching a state-sponsored educational campaign so that people know when they should get a test, where they can get tested and how.
- Breaking down barriers to testing, ensuring that anyone who needs a test can get a test.
- Targeting testing efforts in high-risk settings.