I wouldn't be at all surprised if it's just bad project management. You know how, when you really need to something accomplished without delay, you pursue two

I wouldn't be at all surprised if it's just bad project management. You know how, when you really need to something accomplished without delay, you pursue two paths in parallel, so that by the time phase 1 comes to a close, you've got things ready for phase 2? Well, maybe the CDC doesn't. Obviously they do on some level because they did develop kits (which had problems, which delayed them). But it's one thing to give lip service to getting started on stuff you're going to need in the near future, and it's another thing to commit to it and follow through with it and make sure it happens. Also, I'm sure they were super busy and had other priorities, but lack of testing means the country is flying blind, so this should have made the short list of priorities.