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In an attempt to curb the spread of the coronavirus by individuals who may be asymptomatic, federal health officials are planning to "blitz test" younger people for the virus.
So far, the plans involve the states of Texas, Louisiana and Florida. All three states have experienced recent surges in positive cases of the virus since the phased reopening of businesses. Governors of each state have expressed concerns about the virus being passed on by people under 35 years of age.
"The strategy would be to surge test," said Assistant Secretary for Health at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Admiral Brett Giroir to reporters on Wednesday. "You would do the number of tests you do in a month in just a few days to try to make sure we identify these asymptomatics and get a better handle on them."
Giroir also confirmed discussions were ongoing with health departments in each state. Communities in which the increased testing is expected to take place were not mentioned by name.
Newsweek reached out to the Florida Department of Health, the Louisiana Department of Health and the Texas Department of State Health Services for comment. This story will be updated with any response.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said in a Sunday news conference that coronavirus cases in his state were on the increase because of the social interaction of young people.
"You can't control—they're younger people," DeSantis said. "They're going to do what they're going to do."
Florida hit a single-day record of 9,585 positive cases reported on Saturday. In total, Florida has reported 158,997 positive cases of the virus. In June, Florida prohibited bars from serving alcohol on-site although restaurants may can continue to serve drinks to its customers in an effort to curb new cases of the virus.
DeSantis remained adamant on Tuesday that Florida would not put its reopening strategies on pause because individuals going to businesses was not driving the increase in virus cases. "I think when you see the younger folks—I think a lot of it is more just social interactions, so that's natural," DeSantis told reporters.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott ordered bars in his state to close in June roughly a month after he allowed the establishments to operate at 50 percent capacity. New cases of the coronavirus surged after the bars reopened. Wednesday marked 7,722 new positive COVID-19 cases in the state, bringing Texas's total to 174,991.
"As I said from the start," Abbott said in a June statement, "if the positivity rate rose above 10 percent the State of Texas would take further action to mitigate the spread of COVID-19."
"At this time," Abbott continued, "it is clear that the rise in cases is largely driven by certain types of activities, including Texans congregating in bars."
In response to Abbott's executive order, more than 30 Texas bar owners filed a lawsuit against Abbott claiming his actions violated the state constitution.
Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards signed an executive order in June extending the state's time in Phase Two of its reopening strategies. While occupancy restrictions were not changed by the order, the state is expected to remain in the second phase until July.
In a June statement, Edwards said that people between the ages of 18 and 29 represented the largest number of new cases. "While you may think you are invincible," Edwards wrote, "you are not."
Louisiana reported 2,083 new cases of the virus on Wednesday, making 60,178 the total number of positive coronavirus cases statewide.
