Mobile COVID-19 Testing Unit To Travel Across Howard County

Columbia MD

30 March, 2021

11:27 AM

Description

HOWARD COUNTY, MD — Residents now will have easier access to COVID-19 testing with the introduction of the county's mobile testing bus. The unit will rotate through five locations across Howard County and will be operated by First Call Urgent Care. Testing will be done weekdays from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. Both 15-minute rapid testing and 24-hour PCR testing will be available to residents at no cost at each location. The new testing sites are targeted to support residents who are more vulnerable or need better access to COVID-19 testing. The mobile testing bus will rotate between the following five locations: Monday - Long Reach Village Center, 8775 Cloudleap Ct, ColumbiaTuesday - North Laurel Community Center, 9411 Whiskey Bottom Rd, LaurelWednesday – Normandy Shopping Center, 8480 Baltimore National Pike, Ellicott City (starting April 7)Thursday - Recreation and Parks Headquarters, 7120 Oakland Mills Rd, ColumbiaFriday - The Elkridge 50+ Center, 6540 Washington Blvd, Elkridge "Testing that is accessible, reliable, and widely available helps us to prevent outbreaks and slow the spread of the virus," Howard County Executive Calvin Ball said. "Especially as students and educators head back to school buildings, it's vital our community has the tools in place to stop outbreaks before they occur. Just as we've added mobile vaccination clinics in recent weeks, it is important to have mobile testing in our community. These mobile sites will be more accessible to our community, provide quick test results, and improve our ability to contain COVID-19. This mobile community-based testing is another step in the right direction to put this virus behind us, and I encourage our community to utilize and spread the word about this new initiative. As I've said since the beginning, we're only going to beat this by working together." Dr. Steve Geller, medical director of First Call Urgent Care, stressed that the county needs better access to testing. "Healthcare and community health are of the utmost importance. We are so proud of our staff, providers and doctors who have gone above and beyond over the last year," Geller said.