COVID-19 testing has been brought to the forefront both nationally and locally after test result delays and test shortages have been on the rise.
The Richmond County School System is setting up a testing site for staff and their families and for students with parental consent.
Superintendent Kenneth Bradshaw told board members at the Jan. 18 board meeting that the district is partnering with Heritage Pharma Group to create the site at Windsor Spring Elementary School at 2534 Windsor Spring Rd. The school closed prior to the 2019-2020 school year.
[adrotate banner=”55″]
MORE: Free at-home COVID-19 tests available through postal service website
“We realize that we need our staff in school and our employees at work and they’re critical for us obtaining our mission. The governor has encouraged superintendents to explore testing partnerships to keep schools open,” Bradshaw said.
The superintendent anticipates the testing site will be up and running the week of Jan. 24. The company guarantees results will be available in 24 to 48 hours.
Bradshaw also said, in light of rising numbers of positive cases, the mask mandate will remain in effect for all school district buildings. Richmond County has had to transition more than 30 schools to Learn@Home because of staff shortages due to COVID-19.
The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control is also concerned about the delays to get test results.
In a Jan. 18 press release, the agency said about 97% of COVID-19 tests conducted in the Palmetto State are processed at large, non-DHEC labs.
Dr. Brannon Traxler, the state’s public health director, said, “While we understand the strain that these labs and vendors are experiencing due to this unprecedented demand, we also understand that extreme delays in testing results are unacceptable for the people of South Carolina. We are working with these labs and our vendors to ensure that their turnaround times return to that 48-hour window to help improve the access to timely test results.
Traxler said the agency is encouraging citizens to request the free, at-home antigen test kits made available by the federal government.
People can request up to four, free test kits at www.covidtests.gov. Orders are expected to ship within seven to 12 days of ordering.
[adrotate banner=”51″]
Additionally, DHEC announced it has received about 140,000 at-home rapid COVID-19 antigen tests of the more than two million tests it had ordered.
The test kits each contain two tests and have been distributed for community use to public health departments around the state. The tests can be picked up beginning Jan. 24.
Residents can visit DHEC’s testing locator to confirm whether their local health department has at-home rapid tests available.
Some private testing vendors have fallen so far behind in reporting results that DHEC recommends those individuals finish what would have been their isolation time or return to work if it has been more than five days.
Dana Lynn McIntyre is a Staff Reporter with The Augusta Press. You can reach her at dana@theaugustapress.com
