I waited in line for more than 2 hours to take the coronavirus antibody test and got my results in 10 minutes — here's what it was like

"I think this is important for people to do, especially in areas of high exposure. To be able to donate plasma, which appears to be integral in finding some sort of cure, is amazing, and I would have been very happy to be a part of that."

"Everybody who thinks they may have been exposed, and have the means and the time to get tested, I recommend that they do so. It doesn't mean you're immune, but it may put your mind at ease, and you'll have the opportunity to donate antibodies to help be part of the cure."

Availability for antibody testing is limited and varies by state. Rettinger visited a COVID Clinic in California, which did not require those being tested to meet any specific criteria.

One of the leading voices in consumer electronics journalism, Jon Rettinger brings gadget news to over 2 million people. With a decade of experience covering consumer electronics, Rettinger takes a more business-oriented approach to his coverage, having earned his MBA from the University of California Irvine. Follow him on Twitter.

It said he had tested negative for both COVID-19 and any COVID-19 antibodies. This meant that (with 90% certainty) he had never had the coronavirus — and still has a normal risk of contracting it, according to the results paperwork he received.

"Honestly, I was disappointed. I was hoping that we had already gone through it, that my family had the antibodies and was less likely to get it again, so that I could go out and do shopping for my parents, be more helpful to my grandparents, and be able to donate plasma to hopefully find a cure."

"I did my test at 9:12, and I was out by 9:30."

A worker at the center put tags on Rettinger's car windshield to indicate which tests he was receiving.

"I pulled up to a tent, rolled down my window halfway, they pricked my finger, and directed me to a parking lot to wait for the results."

"I live in Orange County, and the testing facility is in Westminster. To register, you have to go online, give them a payment option — it's a one time $75 fee — and there's contracts you sign afterwards. You can pick whether you want to be tested for just COVID-19, or for the antibodies as well as COVID-19.

"I have three kids — a 6-year-old boy, a 4-year-old boy, and a 10-month old girl. I have parents and grandparents, some of whom are considered high-risk. California has been atypical when it comes to the coronavirus. We've had a lot of exposure, but our death rate is lower than the rest of the country. So there's a theory that we were exposed to it months earlier, without anybody really knowing... and that now we have more herd immunity.

"At the end of February, while school was still in session, my 6-year-old was sick with a fever for about five days," Rettinger said. "My other son got sick with a cough, and my 10-month old got what we thought was croup, which sounds like a really bad cough. My wife and I got the post-nasal drips, and coughs, and it seemed like normal flu stuff."

"I wanted to know if I had the antibodies, if maybe we had coronavirus but didn't really know about it. And if we did, I would be at less of a risk to get it again. You can still get it twice, but I could be more helpful to my family who is quarantined on their own, who are more high-risk. That was the motivation to get tested — that I could stop looking at every package that comes to my door like it's trying to kill me."

Although the test is not yet FDA-approved, the testing facility claims 90% certainty in their results, which Rettinger thought was a pretty good bet, and quite a few other locals did too.

"Everybody waits in their cars, and by the time the facility opened at 9 a.m., it looked like there were hundreds of cars in line behind me."