LOS ANGELES — This is not how Jennifer Lang thought she’d spend the day after Christmas. But along with all the gifts she and her family received this holiday, was one that wasn’t on their wish list.

“My son actually tested positive for COVID on the morning of Christmas Eve,” Lang said.


What You Need To Know

  • Sites across Los Angeles County are scrambling to keep up with an unprecedented demand in COVID tests

  • In the last two weeks, the 911 COVID Testing site near the Getty Center went from processing about 300 tests a day to 1,600

  • The company said it’s also seeing an increase in positivity rates, now hovering at about 12%, up from 2% just two weeks ago

  • The Brentwood site is open until 10 p.m. A second location at LAX is open 24/7

Even though everyone else in her family tested negative, Lang wasn’t taking any chances, shelling out $250 on the most expensive PCR test.

“We took all the precautions we felt that we could,” Lang said. “But here we are and we need to deal with what is.”

Jolie Whitesell came to the site after some of her guests tested positive. So to be sure, she spent about $100 on rapid COVID tests for her and her family.

“We don’t really want to do it but we thought it’s more important because I have an older mother and so does my husband and we just wanted to know that we were OK," Whitesell said.

Sites across Los Angeles County are scrambling to keep up with an unprecedented demand in COVID tests. Ryan Dragoo, who is the manager at 911 COVID Testing site near the Getty Center, said that in the last two weeks he’s gone from processing about 300 tests a day to 1600.

“We’ve deployed all of our resources, all of our employees, to make sure that we’re getting these tests done for everybody,” Dragoo said.

The company said it’s also seeing an increase in positivity rates, now hovering at about 12%, up from 2% just two weeks ago.

Lang waited in line for more than an hour, even with a reservation. Thankfully, she got the result she was hoping for.

“It’s worth it because the relief from knowing that this test is negative just gives us such peace of mind,” Lang said.