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If you have coronavirus symptoms, assume you have the illness, even if you test negative (NYT)

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You had some exposures that may put you at risk for coronavirus. A few days later you come down with a bad cough yourself and feel a little short of breath and really tired. You take your temperature: 101 degrees. A fever.

You suspect you might have Covid-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. The days roll into each other, and your doctor urges you to stay home unless your condition worsens. You feel pretty bad, though, and finally get an appointment.

They test you for influenza by sticking a swab far up your nose, and you are told the test came back negative, you don’t have flu. They tell you they are saving the Covid-19 tests for those who are even worse off than you are. You go home with a prescription for antibiotics, possibly because they don’t know what else to do, and read about celebrities who are testing positive but don’t seem so sick…

To read the entire article from The New York Times, click https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/01/well/live/coronavirus-symptoms-tests-false-negative.html