The CDC apparently tested fewer than 77 people over the course of 2 days this week

coronavirus test.
(Image credit: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)

The CDC only tested 77 people for coronavirus between Sunday and Wednesday of this week, according to a concerning new report by Yahoo News. President Trump has nevertheless doubled down on his claims that testing in the country is "going very smooth," despite the fact that nations like South Korea are testing, by comparison, upwards of 15,000 people per day.

So far, there are 1,300 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the United States, but "more testing will inevitably reveal more coronavirus cases," Yahoo News writes, going on to quote former Department of Homeland Security official Juliette Kayyem, who warned The Atlantic that "low case counts so far may reflect not an absence of the pathogen but a woeful lack of testing."

As of Thursday, some 5,000 Americans total have been tested. Read the full report here.

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Jeva Lange

Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.