COVINGTON, Ky. — Michael Tudor is fully vaccinated against COVID-19 but routinely gets tested every two weeks. As the delta variant surges across the region, though, he's finding he has to wait in longer and longer lines to get swabbed, and as the Labor Day holiday weekend approached, those lines got even longer still.

"We've been trying to do it pretty regularly just to make sure we're not passive carriers," the Ludlow, Kentucky, resident said. "I'm glad people are getting tested."

The swell in demand for COVID-19 testing was prompted not just by the recent spike in cases across the region, but also the start of the school year and holiday and seasonal travel.

It's had Tony Remington, CEO of Covington-based Gravity Diagnostics, and his team running ragged, sometimes testing as many as 1,000 patients a day.

"We're burned out," he told WCPO Friday. "We don't want to do testing anymore. We don't want to set up drive-thrus, but it's the culmination of things."

For much of the pandemic, Gravity has operated five free drive-thru testing sites — subsidized by state funds — across the commonwealth and in Indiana, with 15 more sites planned to pop up over the next two weeks. One of those sites, located on a surface parking lot near the now decommissioned IRS building along Covington's Fourth Street corridor near the Clay Wade Bailey Bridge, lately has seen those drive-thru lines back up out onto the street.

"We're close to saying, 'Sorry, we can't set that up for you anymore,'" he said. "But we're not there yet."

Kiana Martinez, a mother of six, said she needs to get tested but is finding it difficult to find appointments. She tried an area Walgreens, where she was told they didn't have any tests available. Some stores have run out of take-home tests. CVS on Wednesday had to work with a new supplier to try to keep up with their national demand.

"We don't want to see one person who wants testing not get testing and a fast result," Remington said.

It's why he said his crews are working seven days a week, some pulling 18-hour shifts to make sure their clinics get rapid results for as many as they can.

NORWOOD, Ohio — A CVS customer claims pharmacy employees admitted to throwing away leftover COVID-19 vaccines. The company is hearing a different story from the store's managers but did say that in rare cases, some vaccine doses get trashed.

Matt Moning called it "plain stupidity."

He visited the CVS on Montgomery Road in Norwood on Saturday, when he brought an 80-year-old neighbor to get her coronavirus vaccine. As he waited inside, curiosity over the end-of-the-day leftovers led to frustration.

"I have diabetes, high blood pressure. I'm just a medical mess," he told WCPO. "I figured, well if you don't have an 80-year-old or 70-year-old standing here, I said, you know, will you call me and give me the shot so you don't throw it away?"

Moning said he was surprised by the employee's response.

"He says, 'You know, even if I had it, I wouldn't give it to you,'" Moning said.

In a statement, CVS told WCPO: "We have no reports or evidence of vaccine being improperly disposed of at our pharmacies. Our pharmacy teams remain diligent and trained to ensure waste is prevented and excess doses do not remain at the end of the day. In the rare instance that unused doses become no longer clinically viable and cannot be refrozen, they are either utilized elsewhere for a member of an eligible population or disposed of per (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) and manufacturer guidelines."

Dominic Hopson is an assistant health commissioner for the Cincinnati Health Department. He agreed that waste of COVID-19 vaccine doses is rare.

"We're very proud of that. We have a strong system in place," he said. "It's difficult, but it takes a lot of planning.

CHD counts doses, calls eligible patients on waitlists, and, as a fall-back, calls first responders who still need the vaccine. CVS lacks the same access to police, fire fighters or paramedics and insists they are following all the rules.

"That's government red tape at its best," Moning said. "My thing is, we live in the greatest nation in the world, and they can't figure out how to give a shot? It's pretty easy. If you know you're going to open a vial at four o'clock, you make sure that you got five people lined up to give that shot to."

Several CVS stores across Ohio will be getting extra doses of the vaccines soon, a company spokesperson said Friday. It will be coming from nursing homes that did not use all of their allotment.

Several national retailers say they’ll continue to require face coverings in their stores even as Texas and some other states lift mask requirements.

Both the Lone Star State and Mississippi announced Tuesday that they’d end their face mask requirements in public spaces and said they’d allow businesses to reopen at 100% capacity as COVID-19 cases dip across the country.

Other states have taken similar actions, despite warnings from public health officials that the pandemic is far from over and easing restrictions threatens the nation’s recovery.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top expert on infectious diseases, criticized these states for lifting their mask mandates, calling the decision “inexplicable” and “ill-advised.”

Though these states aren’t requiring their residents to wear masks, many national stores are continuing to ask all customers to do so, at least for now.

Below is a list of major retailers continuing mask policies:

Target

A Target spokesperson said in a statement Thursday that the company is still requiring its guests and employees to wear masks or face coverings in all of its stores, except for guests with underlying medical conditions and young children. And as more Americans get vaccinated for COVID-19, Target is still asking those who have received a vaccine to wear masks and follow all social distancing guidelines.

Kroger

Kroger, the country’s largest chain of groceries, said in a statement Thursday that it will continue to require everyone in its stores to wear masks until “all our frontline grocery associates can receive the COVID-19 vaccine.” The company owns stores under different names as well, including King Soopers, Ralphs and Dillons. It’s also advocating for federal, state and local officials to prioritize grocery workers in vaccine rollout plans.

CVS

CVS said in a statement Thursday that its face covering policy remains in effect at all of its pharmacies nationwide, based on federal public health recommendations. The company said, “if a customer is not wearing a mask or face covering, we will refer them to our signage and ask that they help protect themselves and those around them by listening to the experts and heeding the call to wear a face covering.”

Walgreens

Like CVS, fellow pharmacy chain Walgreens says its masking policy is not changing. It still requires team members and customers to wear masks, unless doing so would inhibit the individual’s health or if the person is under 2 years old. “We have signage on doors and make announcements over the store's public address system to remind customers that face covers are required,” a spokesperson said in a statement.

ALDI

ALDI, a grocery chain which has locations in both Texas and Mississippi, said it doesn’t plan to make any adjustments to its safety measures at this time. A company spokesperson said in a statement, “For the health and well-being of the communities we serve and for the protection of our employees, we will maintain our current nationwide policy requiring all employees and customers to wear a face covering when shopping in our stores.”

Starbucks

Starbucks will also keep enforcing its face mask requirements for its staff and customers. In a statement, a spokesperson said the coffee company will “continue to make decisions rooted in facts and science and are committed to meeting or exceeding public health mandates.”

Others

Reports from USA Today, Bloomberg and CBS News show additional companies, like Best Buy, Kohl’s, and Macy’s are also continuing their mask mandates. We’ve reached out to them for confirmation and are waiting to hear back.

CDC still asking people to mask up

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is continuing to ask Americans to mask up when in public spaces to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus to prevent any more spikes in cases. Click here to learn more about masking.

Ohio changed the game for vaccine incentives when the state introduced the Vax-a-Million campaign. Now, 10 other states and some big companies have raised the stakes to boost vaccine rates.

Companies like Kroger, United Airlines and CVS are leaning in big, but beware -- experts see a risk that could get sloppy copycats in big trouble. Ken Katkin, a law professor at Northern Kentucky University, said if customers have to go in the store and buy anything, the company’s legal sweepstakes becomes a liability.

"They have to be careful to make sure that it's absolutely free for anybody to enter," Katkin said. "Because that would be gambling, which they're not necessarily licensed for, right. So a sweepstakes or a lottery that costs nothing for anyone to enter isn't considered gambling. It's legal for them to do that."

CVS plans to offer free cruises, vacations, gift cards, and with help from Procter & Gamble, a trip to the Super Bowl. United Airlines is giving away free flights around the world for a year. Kroger is going to give five vaccinated people $1 million dollars and 10 others free groceries for a year. Winners should expect a tax, though, even on the groceries.

"Any prize in excess of $600 will require tax reporting on a 10-99," said Bob Salyer, a tax instructor at Northern Kentucky University.

The big prize potential seems to be working in some areas. Vaccine rates jumped 33% in Ohio the week after the state announced its million-dollar incentive lottery, according to an Associated Press analysis.

"I think whatever it takes to get people vaccinated, I think it's great,” said Sheri Wilson of Lawrenceburg. "I don't know where that money is coming from, but it's a great incentive.”

Jared Reynolds of Lawrenceburg is not so fond of the idea and hopes it doesn’t pop up in Indiana.

"I'm glad that Indiana doesn't have anything like the million-dollar vaccine," Reynolds said. “I wish that money would be added more toward schools. There's starving veterans. There's starving people out there. Give them groceries. I think we need to take care of those people as well."

Kentucky Lottery gave an incentive to Kentuckians by giving free $1 Cash Ball plays to those who got vaccinated from May 10 to 21 at Kroger or Walmart locations. The potential earnings topped out at $225,000.