LEBANON, Pa. — The Pennsylvania Department of Health announced Thursday that its regional COVID-19 testing site extension program will offer drive-through and walk-in testing clinics in five counties, including Lebanon County.
The Lebanon County clinic will be located at the Lebanon County Fire School on 833 Metro Drive in Lebanon, the department said.
In addition to Lebanon County, the latest pop-up sites will also be offered in Berks, Indiana, Lackawanna, and Lawrence counties, according to the department.
The new clinics will open Saturday.
The counties with testing sites will continue to change weekly over the next three weeks, so that a total of 61 counties will eventually be covered by testing sites over a 12-week period, the department said.
“While recent decreases in daily positive cases are promising, they don’t negate the need for testing,” Acting Secretary of Health Alison Beam said. “We encourage anyone who feels they need or want a test to take advantage of these free pop-up testing locations.
"From March 2020 through February 10, 2021, the department has received 9,685,927 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test results, which roughly equates to 75.7 percent of the population. From May 2020 through February 10, 2021, the department has received 1,451,884 antigen test results. The total number of tests combined equates to 11,137,811, roughly 87 percent of the total Pennsylvania population.”
The department extended and expanded its initial contract with AMI to perform pop-up testing in counties across the state. Counties under the initial contract, as well as the total number of patients tested, can be found here.
The initial AMI testing and the extension were funded by the federal ELC Enhancing Detection grant.
The department said it believes that increased testing in the counties will assist in determining the prevalence of the virus and assist the county in moving forward.
Concerning counties, identified as those with percent positives above five percent, which is currently every county in the state, can be found on the Early Warning Monitoring Dashboard, the department said.
Each county is being monitored as the state continues to examine all available data, according to the department.
The AMI testing sites will be open to anyone who feels they need a test. It is important that even people with no symptoms who test positive isolate to stop the spread of COVID-19.
Testing at the latest sites will be available daily from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, through Wednesday, February 17.
The testing site locations and addresses in the other four counties are:
- Berks County: Reform Congregation Oheb Sholom Synagogue, 555 Warwick Drive, Wyomissing, PA, 19610;
- Indiana County: Indiana Mall (Former Bon Ton parking area near the Warren Rd. entrance), 2334 Oakland Ave., Indiana, PA, 15701;
- Lackawanna County: Scranton High School, 63 Mike Munchak Way, Scranton, PA, 18508;
- Lawrence County: Cascade Park, 1928 E. Washington St., New Castle, PA, 16101
No parking or restrooms will be available for Berks and Lackawanna counties, so everyone driving must use the drive-thru. The walk-up section of the sites is reserved for individuals who arrive through public transportation.
Those being tested in Berks County should start on State Hill Road, drive to Wellington Boulevard, then make a left onto Warwick Drive. This will take you to the site which is approximately 2.5 blocks down on the right. Warwick Drive will be made one way throughout the event so this will be the only way to access the site. There will be signage placed to direct vehicles from State Hill Road.
Up to 450 patients can be tested per day. Mid-nasal passage swab PCR tests will be performed. Testing is on a first-come, first-serve basis and is completely free to all patients. Testing is also open to individuals who are not county residents. Patients must be ages three and older and are not required to show symptoms of COVID-19 in order to be tested. No appointment is necessary. Patients are encouraged to bring a photo-ID or insurance card. Registration will also be completed on-site. The turnaround time for testing results is two to seven days after testing.
Individuals who are tested should self-quarantine while they await test results. Individuals who live with other people should self-quarantine in a private room and use a private bathroom if possible. Others living in the home with the individual awaiting test results should also stay at home. The department has additional instructions for individuals waiting for a COVID-19 test result. Individuals who test positive will receive a phone call from AMI while individuals who test negative will receive a secured-PDF emailed to them from AMI.
For the latest information for individuals, families, businesses and schools, visit “Responding to COVID-19” on pa.gov.
