Coronavirus testing shame: Stars and billionaires are getting them – so why aren’t everyone else?

The dire shortage of coronavirus tests in the United States and across the world, which is slowing down crucial diagnoses and leaving many wondering if they have the virus or not, has prompted many to ask how celebrities and entire basketball teams have been able to get their hands on the tests. 

In the United States, there are mounting stories of people suffering symptoms of COVID-19 and phoning healthcare hotlines asking to be tested but being refused because they have not come into contact with a known case or been to China recently. 

Instead, the advice for those people is to self-isolate for at least 14 days and seek medical help if they develop respiratory problems. It tosses up a range of questions for already terrified Americans. 

They do not know if and when they will be able to re-enter society, go to work or see anyone that they consider to be ‘vulnerable’. They also do not know if they ever had the virus or if their symptoms subsiding makes it safe for them to go outside or see anyone.  

But celebrities, sports stars and politicians who show no symptoms whatsoever are being able to get access to them by buying them privately. 

It is unclear where the are getting them from.

When asked about the disparity at a press conference on Wednesday, President Trump said it was ‘the story of life’. 

Kris Jenner reportedly got a test for the same reasons but she tested negative

Idris Elba tested positive for the virus. He got a test despite not showing symptoms because he had been in contact with someone who had it. Kris Jenner reportedly got a test for the same reasons but she tested negative. She has neither confirmed nor denied the report

Kevin Durant tested positive for the virus along with three other Nets players. The entire team was tested - which some are saying was wasteful of the limited tests

Kevin Durant tested positive for the virus along with three other Nets players. The entire team was tested – which some are saying was wasteful of the limited tests 

There are several private labs that are developing tests and many are working with the government to mass produce them and make them available to the public for free. 

Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson were tested in Australia after flying there - they tested positive

Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson were tested in Australia after flying there – they tested positive 

Where the tests are coming from that the rich and powerful have paid for remains unknown.  

British actor Idris Elba announced to his fans that he has tested positive for the test, despite not showing any symptoms. ‘On Friday, last week, I was told that someone that I had been in contact with had tested positive. 

‘And I’m, I’m on location, about to start a film, and the news breaks that this person – who is also in the public eye – had tested positive. 

‘It was something that I had to do as I was about to start filming and was around a lot of people. 

‘Quite honestly, my job made me test immediately,’ he said. 

‘I had to test anyway because it meant putting a lot of people at risk. 

‘We got a test immediately – we were really lucky to get a test quickly because of the shortage of tests,’ he said in a video to fans without offering where he got the test or how anyone else might be able to procure the same one. 

The person he is thought to have come into contact with is Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s wife, Sophie Gregoire-Trudeau, who tested positive for the virus after returning to Canada from London. 

How she got a test is also unknown.  

Sophie Trudeau, Canadian PM Justin Trudeau's wife, tested positive after reporting mild flu symptoms

Sophie Trudeau, Canadian PM Justin Trudeau’s wife, tested positive after reporting mild flu symptoms 

She has not confirmed whether or not she has been in contact with anyone with else who has the virus or if she had been in China recently. The only symptoms she reported were like those of a mild flu. 

Kris Jenner tested negative for the test after attending a birthday party with billionaire Lucian Grainge, who has tested positive for the virus, according to Entertainment Tonight.  

Jenner has neither confirmed nor denied the report.  

Sports commentator Charles Berkeley said he was waiting for the results of a test too. 

‘I haven’t been feeling great and they didn’t want me to take any chances,’ he said earlier this week. 

Eight full NBA teams have been tested for coronavirus, despite some of the players not showing symptoms. 

Among them was the Brooklyn Nets. Three of their players tested positive. New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said it was wasteful for so many of them to get the test. 

The team defended itself by saying they bought the tests privately. 

Medical personnel at a drive-thru facility in Jericho, New York. Even some healthcare professionals who are on the front line of the crisis are being refused tests

Medical personnel at a drive-thru facility in Jericho, New York. Even some healthcare professionals who are on the front line of the crisis are being refused tests 

Others are being refused tests because there simply are not enough in the public system to go around

Others are being refused tests because there simply are not enough in the public system to go around 

Bob Myers, the president of basketball operations for the Golden State Warriors, disagreed with their position. 

In a conference call on Wednesday, he said: ‘We’ve been told that the testing is in short supply. 

 ‘We’re not better than anybody, not worse. Just a basketball team.’

Bob Myers, the president of basketball operations for the Golden State Warriors

‘We’re not better than anybody, not worse. Just a basketball team.’  

Others who do not seem to be having a problem accessing the tests are politicians. 

Congressmen Mario Diaz-Balart and Ben McAdams have both tested positive for the virus. 

President Donald Trump tested negative for the disease after coming into contact with the Brazilian President – who also tested negative – and one of his aides who tested positive for it last week. 

Ivanka Trump was in close contact with an Australian government minister Peter Dutton, who tested positive for the virus.  

In the UK, people are paying up to $500 for the tests. 

In the US, no one is advertising that they have them. Sources told DailyMail.com that medical concierge service Sollis Health, which members pay $5,000-a-year for, had been offering to come to their homes to test people. 

Sollis did not respond to repeated requests for comment on Thursday.

The disparity between ordinary people getting

The disparity between ordinary people getting 

Its founder previously told The Financial Times that business was booming with requests from members for ICUs in their homes and special care. 

The FDA has said it will allow companies to start marketing to the public directly to try to speed up people getting tests. 

Trump on Wednesday told reporters in a White House briefing that it was the 'story of life' that the rich and privileged have access to tests when others don't

Trump on Wednesday told reporters in a White House briefing that it was the ‘story of life’ that the rich and privileged have access to tests when others don’t 

The first at-home testing kit is due to come from Everlywell, an Austin-based company which plan to ship them to people from March 23 for $135 or $165 for an overnight test. 

Doctors have to prescribe them online first. People will get the results either by phone or text later.  

Doctors and other public workers are becoming increasingly frustrated at the ongoing stories from celebrities that they are being tested before people who are extremely sick.  

‘What’s frustrating is to continue to hear that there aren’t testing kits available, and my rank and file have to continue to answer calls for service while professional athletes and movie stars are getting tested without even showing any symptoms,’  Eddie Garcia, the police chief of San Jose, California, said on a conference call with officials. 

There are not even enough tests for doctors and nurses working on the front line, many without masks because those are also in such short supply. 

More and more people are complaining of horrendous symptoms like difficulty breathing and sweltering fevers but are not being given the tests, even when they are in the hospital.  

There are now more than 11,000 cases of the virus in the United States and 165 have died

There are now more than 11,000 cases of the virus in the United States and 165 have died 

Read more at DailyMail.co.uk