Where are the tests?
COVID-19 tests are hard to come by in rural West Texas
Almost daily, I log into social media and find someone on a public page asking how to get tested for COVID. It’s a failure, from the president down, that Americans still don’t have easy access to testing. It was part of Joe Biden’s campaign last year and yet, it hasn’t materialized.
There are home tests available. I have several, just in case. But can you imagine a world where we could all test ourselves, say weekly, or before events like weddings or funerals, or school, and feel confident that we weren’t adding to the spread? That this continues is infuriating and exhausting, as is the fact that this is mostly an American failure. There are first world countries across the globe who do have easy access. Where are the tests?
I assure you that I don’t have the answer to this national problem, though I did some asking around to find out how to test on a local level.
Chief Darrell Losoya confirmed that the Alpine Police Department does do testing using the Abbott Binax Now kit, which you may be familiar with if your child has been tested at school. It is also available for home use, though hard to come by.
Chief Losoya said he averages about three tests a day and that he has enough supplies to sustain that level for a while. An appointment is necessary and you can only get tested if he’s available. APD does not have the resources for a mass amount of testing. This particular test works best on symptomatic cases.
I contacted Dr. Adrian Billings about something else I see pretty consistently on social media. People who feel sick or have been exposed contact their doctors’ offices about getting a test. However, they need to see a provider first and appointments are currently being scheduled two weeks out on average.
Dr. Billings confirmed, but explained, “The reasons that patients are having difficulty getting in for medical care are the same reasons that patients are having trouble getting COVID tests. Since February of 2021 the Big Bend area has lost five family physicians, a nurse practitioner and a physician assistant,” he said. “This provider loss accounts for over 50 percent of our provider workforce in this already medically underserved and under-resourced area. We have had multiple nurses, respiratory therapists and a sonogram technician leave the area in order to find higher paying work as a result of the pandemic.”
At Dr. Billings’ clinic, the cost of testing the uninsured is covered by a federal program. In more urban areas, he said, mass testing is ongoing as there are medical providers available, and he said he has advocated for help in our area.
I asked Brewster County Judge Eleazar Cano about the issue, and he told me that he and Emergency Management Coordinator Stephanie Elmore have explored every available option, and he remains unsatisfied. Elmore also noted that the state dashboard is not up to date with case totals.
Ruth Hucke, the head of Public Relations at Big Bend Regional Medical Center, said Testing is available there, but a doctor’s order is required with symptoms or a high risk exposure, as defined by the CDC.
The Regeneron antibody infusion is available at BBRMC. Hucke said they started providing the treatment last year; they did six in September and have done four so far this month.
Should you be able to take a drive, there’s a walk in clinic in Fort Stockton at 511 N. Main Street open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and 1 to 5 p.m. on Sunday.
They do take patients from out of town, and it’s a rapid test that costs $120 if you’re not insured.
Dr. Billings testified last Tuesday in a hearing for the Texas House Public Health Committee on Border Health and Health workforce issues. He specifically addressed what he called the inadequate workforce and scarce services in rural areas, and proposed an interesting solution based on a model in Illinois where medical, nursing and pharmacy students with a stated interest in remaining in rural communities are given priority for admission, and do their training in the areas where they are needed. Since 1992, 70 percent of the students are practicing or have practiced in these historically undeserved areas.
To that end, the Alpine Public Library is hosting a conversation about local healthcare resources this Saturday, Oct. 16, at 1 p.m. Dr. Billings and J.D. Newsom, the director of the Big Bend Regional Hospital District, will each speak before attendees break into groups to discuss experiences, issues and ideas.
Don Wetterauer, the executive director of APL, said the purpose is to bring awareness to available resources and limitations of our region so that we’re better prepared as a citizenry to lobby our government officials as they make the decisions about healthcare that affect us all.”
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