Even with COVID-19 vaccination efforts, testing is still an important tool in the arsenal to fight the pandemic.
This week, instead of going to the WVU Rec Center, individuals who want to get a COVID-19 test Monday or Friday can go to Morgantown Municipal Airport, where testing will be held as a drive-through event. As usual, testing will be held from 9-11 a.m.
Then, the following week, testing will return to the WVU Rec Center.
There will be additional changes. Starting May 17 and continuing every Monday and Friday for the rest of the spring until around the time fall classes commence, testing will be from 9 a.m.-noon, for an extra hour each day.
Also, WVU and community testing will be combined, and WVU will conduct the testing on Mondays, and MCHD will administer tests on Friday.
Here are some instances in which people should consider getting tested:
Individuals who have travel plans would do well to test before and after their trips, and in some instances, they might be required to get one.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also suggests testing for anyone who has taken part in activities that put them at a higher risk for COVID-19, such as a large gathering and/or an event where social distancing was difficult.
Of course, anyone with symptoms should get tested. The CDC also states that individuals who have been vaccinated and exposed to COVID-19 but who do not have symptoms do not need to be tested for COVID-19.
But that does not mean you can’t if you want to be on the safe side. In fact, some health department employees working in the field who have been vaccinated still regularly get tested for COVID-19, just in case.
Remember, if you do have concerns about a COVID-19 exposure, you should wait at least five days before getting a test in order to avoid a false negative.
And speaking of vaccinated individuals, if you are not in this group, please consider getting inoculated. Reaching herd immunity means getting up to at least 70% vaccination rate, and West Virginia is only halfway there.
To make an appointment for a vaccine, go to Vaccine.WVUMedicine.org or call 1-833-795-SHOT (1-833-795-7468).
And to get tested, remember, Monday and Friday go to Morgantown Municipal Airport between 9-11 a.m.
