As cases of the COVID-19 virus are on the rise in the region, the demand for testing is also on the rise. It is very difficult to get a date on a Saturday, except in the La Tuque region.

At Trois-Rivières, 98% of the availability slots for Saturday had already been filled in at the time of writing, early in the afternoon. The people were then redirected to Shawinigan where 90% of the appointments were also booked.

The problem is the same at Centre-du-Québec. The increase in cases in Sherbrooke is causing strain on the network. Many users were redirected to Drummondville and Victoriaville where 96% and 97% of the available time actually found recipients at 1pm.

CIUSSS claims to have a sufficient number of staff available to increase the daily examination capacity at any time.

On Saturday afternoon, more than 40% of the time slots for Sunday were still available, and that is, across the territory.

In Mauricie and Center-du-Québec, more than 300 people are currently considered to be carriers of the virus after screening. Nine people have been hospitalized, one of whom is in intensive care.