State officials recently tied up with a Florida doctor to provide COVID-19 test results to over 100,000 residents regardless of the recent status of the medical professional who, according to reports, "had been on probation for 10 years by the state medical board."

Officials of the Emergency Management said on Friday that Dr. Eric Pantaleon, a pediatrician, was fired because of complaints that thousands of COVID-19 test results had been delayed.

The state hired Pantaleon and the Medical Associates Network, the company which the pediatrician owns, to supervise 12 test sites which include the fairgrounds at Florida International University and the Holiday Park in Fort Lauderdale and.

Meanwhile, the Florida Division of Emergency management director Jared Moskowitz said, the state knew the delays in the test result. However, he added, last week's ousting of Pantaleon's firm was due to his history.

The Doctor's Past Story

Dr. Pantaleon, the Florida Department of Health records indicate, was put on probation by the board of medicine of Florida 10 years ago, after inappropriately treating multiple patients for HIV. 

Also, based on records from the US Drug Enforcement Administration, his name appeared as well, on a list of doctors in Florida who had purchased ample "amounts of opioids" last year. The doctor has not responded yet to phone calls, emails, and voicemails requesting for comment on the issue.

News agencies found that the residents were told to call him if, within five days, they have not received their results yet. However, a lot of them said, the pediatrician was never returning their calls.

For instance, John Gillen, a media company reported, had his test in end-April. He said, it took 17 days before his results came out, which happened to be negative.

Gillen explained to Sun-Sentinel that they are "forcing people to get back into work that is not necessarily safe" since they are encountering people like them, who think they are safe but they are not receiving their test results to confirm if they really are.

There were no clear details as to how Pantaleon's history "slipped through the cracks" while the hiring process was going on.

Labs the State has Tied-Up with for the COVID-19 Test Results

The state is contracting with laboratories to operate testing sites. It is also using third parties to rely on the results. Most of these labs like LabCorp or Quest are processing results in just up to three days and usually, it is the doctor or nurse who calls with the results.

Hover, for Genetworx Laboratories which has over 100,000 processed tests in Florida, was sub-contracted by CDR Maguire, a firm which Pantaleon then, hired. Based on reports, this company has also terminated the pediatrician.

Tina Vidal, the Executive Vice President of CDR Macquire said, as test sites turned out to be "more widely available state-wide," there was an exponential corresponding rise in getting in touch with patients." 

The company has since introduced an internet-based notification portal for people so they can have their results checked. However, the portal stayed inactive as of Friday. According to Vidal, it is currently being updated.

A 24-year-old research analyst at FIU, Charles Bond said, he could not leave his house and go into the laboratory to work until he got his test results. 

Bond said he had experienced COVID-19 symptoms so he was urged by his boss to get tested first before going back to work.

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