FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Teachers in Broward County were given the hard-to-find testing kits only to realize that they were expired. The district told Local 10 that they are aware of the issue but are telling teachers that they can use the tests up to 90 days after they have expired.
The district said that employees were told on New Year’s Day that the COVID-19 home test kits were effective after the expiration date. But if they discovered one that was older than 90 days that they could return it for a new one.
One teacher said she got the test at Indian Trace Elementary in Weston, then realized it expired last September. She was told she could use it for another three months, but even then, her test was too old and not usable.
Anna Fusco, the president of the Broward Teacher’s Union, said the district is trying to fix the problem.
Testing demand for teachers is still high because of the omicron driven COVID-19 surge.
“We have multiple, multiple teachers in schools that are out because of flu-like symptoms, they get tested, they find out they’re positive,” she said.
On Thursday, there was a bombshell admission by officials from the state of Florida.
“We had between 800,000 and a million test kits — Abbott test kits — in our warehouse that did expire,” Kevin Guthrie, director of Florida’s Division of Emergency Management, said at the conference. “We tried to give them out prior to that, but there wasn’t a demand for it.” Guthrie said the state received a three-month extension for the kits that expired between December 26 and 30,
But the demand is still there and, in fact, the district continues to give out the testing kits at different schools throughout Broward County
As for the union, Local 10 learned there are plans for them to open a drive-thru testing location at their headquarters in Tamarac.
For information on where you can get a COVID-19 vaccine or test in South Florida, click here.