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RWSA still testing wastewater despite what CDC data may show
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (WVIR) - Virginia has used wastewater testing to track COVID-19 cases throughout the pandemic. Now, there seems to be a lag in data in Albemarle County.
From mid March throughout April, the CDC data tracking site shows a rise in COVID-19 concentration showing up in wastewater. Data reporting seems to have stopped April 18, but the testing has not.
“Sometimes, for a variety of reasons, data aren’t appearing on COVID data tracker, but they are available to the Health Department,” CDC Acting Program Support and Coordination Lead for the National Wastewater Surveillance System Rachel West said. “It may be something to do with that in this case.”
West says it starts with test sites.
“Then a variety of different labs process those samples, and that data goes to the state, local, territorial or tribal health department, and they then can submit that data to CDC,” she said.