Mobile COVID-19 testing sites will be heading to different Onondaga County communities in the coming weeks as the county tries to test 14,000 people per month in order to qualify for an economic restart.
County Executive Ryan McMahon reported that 790 tests have been returned between Tuesday and Wednesday.
“Our five day average is 457 a day in Onondaga County. That’s essentially meeting our criteria. We’re going to even boost that up,” said McMahon. “And we have talked to all the other counties as well in the Central region about doing is more proactive testing. And if you need help with test kits, we’ll help you.”
The health department has just about finished proactively testing assisted living homes and is now working with independent living communities and the Syracuse Housing Authority. The step after this will be bringing testing sites to under-tested communities and those with potentially harmful trends.
“That’s going to require outreach in neighborhoods, credible messengers,” said McMahon. “But the strategy is changed now. It’s about we need to do 14,000 tests. How can we do this in a way that helps us limit the spread?”
McMahon said with more tests being done, the number of cases will rise. But he said the number that matters more is the percentage of positive tests returned rather than the total number of cases. COVID-19 is still in the community. There were 63 new cases Wednesday, and one death. A woman with underlying health conditions in her 60s died due to the novel coronavirus.
