Mnuchin: ‘I really don’t know’ when Google website for managing coronavirus testing will be ready

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Sunday that he doesn’t know when the Google website designed to manage coronavirus testing will be ready to launch. 

The comment comes days after President Trump said the tech company was developing the website “very quickly.”

“I really don’t know,” Mnuchin said on ABC’s “this Week” when asked about the timeline. 

“Again, I’m sure it’s as quickly as possible,” Mnuchin added. 

“I really don’t know,” Mnuchin tells @jonkarl when asked when the Google website to facilitate coronavirus testing will be available.

Trump said it will be developed “quickly” but the company developing the site said that the tool is the “early stages.” https://t.co/XkLFkSaaAp pic.twitter.com/uYpVf2A3Ma

— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) March 15, 2020

Trump said Friday that the tech giant is “helping to develop a website.”

“It’s going to be very quickly done, unlike websites of the past, to determine whether a test is warranted and to facilitate testing at a nearby, convenient location,” he said.

But Verily, the life sciences division of Google, said Friday evening that the company was in the “early stages of development, and planning to roll testing out in the Bay Area, with the hope of expanding more broadly over time.”

Statement from Verily: “We are developing a tool to help triage individuals for Covid-19 testing. Verily is in the early stages of development, and planning to roll testing out in the Bay Area, with the hope of expanding more broadly over time.

— Google Communications (@Google_Comms) March 13, 2020

ABC’s Jonathan Karl qasked Mnuchin about the contradiction and the secretary responded that Google has “made commitments to us” and “been incredibly helpful.”

“And as I’ve said, the president is bringing in all the companies to make sure whatever resources we need. Industry is working with government,” he said. 

{mosads}But when Karl pushed for a specific deadline, Mnuchin answered, “I don’t really know.”

The apparent mixed messages in public information provided by the Trump administration has sparked criticism from his opponents. 

Lawmakers have also blasted the administration for its slow start in making testing available to the public, while the president has repeatedly said “anybody that needs a test” can get one. As of Monday, about 5,000 people had been tested for the virus in the country.