Atlanta, April 6, 2020 — Georgia motorists were told to keep their windows rolled up as they lined up at a mass site for drive-thru testing for COVID-19 that opened Monday in a parking deck at the Georgia Institute of Technology.
The state is partnering with CVS Health to set up rapid testing that can accommodate multiple lanes of cars at one time on Georgia Tech’s campus in midtown Atlanta, Gov. Brian Kemp announced.
“Roll your window up, roll your window up!” a police officer yelled at drivers as they approached the first of at least two checkpoints.
Dozens of drivers pressed their photo IDs and cellphones against their car windows to show their appointment confirmations. Cars were then directed to another area where testing was being done.
The process is expected to take about 30 minutes from the time of the test to delivery of results, Kemp said in a statement Monday. Positive results can be delivered in as little as five minutes, CVS said in a statement.
“Increased access to rapid testing remains one of our top priorities in order to identify more cases, get Georgians the care they need, and prevent further infection in our communities,” Kemp said.
Georgia has seen more than 200 deaths in the state and more than 1,300 have been hospitalized. Total infections confirmed in the state exceed 7,000.
At full capacity, the site will be able to conduct up to 1,000 tests per day.
“It will help us get a better sense of how widespread the virus is in the community,” said Dr. Marybeth Sexton, an infectious disease expert at the Emory University School of Medicine.
Fulton County, home to the city of Atlanta, leads the state in the number of cases with nearly 1,000.
Patients must pre-register in advance for a same-day appointment online at www.CVS.com/minuteclinic/covid-19-testing.
For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause severe illness, including pneumonia, and death.
Another new program to create thousands of masks was announced Monday by the Georgia Department of Corrections. Inmates at three prisons where it has sewing plants are making non-medical-grade masks for inmates and staff.
The production of the masks, which can be hand-washed and reused, began March 31 at Central, Hancock and Pulaski state prisons. Ultimately, the plan is to make 85,000 masks so that each staff member and each inmate at all Georgia prisons has two masks.
As of Sunday evening, 17 inmates had tested positive for COVID-19, including two Lee State Prison inmates who have died, and 25 Department of Corrections staff members had confirmed cases, according to the agency’s website. – AP
