Evers: Wisconsin takes ‘big steps’ to increase testing capacity

In order for the state to reopen, Governor Tony Evers said Wisconsin will have to expand access to testing.

The governor's office announced the state has grown labs capable of testing for COVID-19 from eight to 36 in the last month, working with the Wisconsin Clinical Lab Network.

The state plans to add more labs and testing, continuing the public-private partnerships in place, but Evers' said the state will need federal assistance to ensure the availability of critical supplies in Wisconsin.

Evers and top health officials say more testing means a better sense of the spread of COVID-19 and better contact tracing to identify possible exposures to the virus.

"We are starting to double down on our efforts to bring people the test that they need so we have a better understanding of our prevalence in our communities," said Acting DHS Secretary Andrea Palm.

Evers also wants to be able to test anyone who may be experiencing symptoms of COVID-19, but state officials did not provide a timeline on when this could be accomplished.

Wisconsin labs will be receiving 250,000 virus testing supplies in the coming weeks according to the governor office.

Below is a summary provided by the governors' office of how far the state has come in expanding testing and actions being taken to conduct more tests.