As COVID-19 cases rise in Vanderburgh County, officials say local testing centers are overwhelmed. WNIN’s Sarah Kuper has more on how state and county officials are handling the surge.
Early in the pandemic, the Indiana Department of Health deployed so-called “strike teams” to communities needing increased testing capacity. Now, the strike team is coming back to Vanderburgh County.
In June, the Vanderburgh County Health Department announced that the CK Newsome testing center was closing because demand for COVID-19 testing had dwindled. The closure signaled a small measure of victory against the virus.
But as cases surge and the line for testing circles the parking lots of remaining testing sites, Indiana health officials are sending state personnel and supplies to Vanderburgh County and setting up the downtown location for testing once again.
This Friday and Saturday, officials will have the capacity to test 300 individuals each day.
The difference between the CK Newsome parking lot of 2020 compared with this weekend’s set up? There will be an area to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.