Democratic congresswoman says her difficulties getting tested for COVID-19 highlight need for 'coherent' national strategy

Jahana Hayes.
(Image credit: Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Rep. Jahana Hayes (D-Conn.) announced she tested positive for COVID-19 on Sunday morning, making her the latest lawmaker to contract the virus.

Hayes, who said she is largely asymptomatic save for "breathing issues which are being monitored," will quarantine for 14 days. In a Twitter thread, the congresswoman explained how difficult it was for her to get a test, perhaps contradicting assumptions about access to testing on Capitol Hill.

Hayes said she had to go to two urgent care centers on Saturday before she finally secured an appointed at a third site for Sunday morning. Her experience, she writes, shows why the U.S. needs to implement a "coherent" and efficient national testing strategy. Tim O'Donnell

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Tim O'Donnell

Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.