Some private clinics said they were only testing people without symptoms, or were closed on weekends. Many others required out-of-pocket payments, often with tiered pricing: $250 for one-hour results; $175 if you wait 24 hours. You could also get a 24-hour turnaround if you’re using health insurance but also pony up a $75 rush fee. Otherwise, getting a result would take several days. Appointments were filled anyway.

For $149, I nabbed an appointment for a rapid antigen test (results in an hour) and a PCR test (48 hours) from a truck in Virginia. Luckily, I have a car and could afford the fee; many Americans don’t have that luxury.

The result of the rapid test was negative, but that wasn’t sufficiently reliable given my exposure and symptoms. When I asked to confirm the PCR test’s 48-hour turnaround, the attendant said the surge was slowing things down. (Nine days later, I still don’t have the result.)

The next day, I secured another slot 30 miles into Virginia at a lab that promised a “medical director” would call “within 24 hours” if my test was positive.