FRANKFORT, Ky. (LEX 18) — The state is opening up new COVID-19 community testing sites as the number of new cases rises and hospitals become overwhelmed.
The new COVID-19 community testing sites, in partnership with Wild Health and UK, will be at the following locations:
- Corbin: Baptist Health Corbin
- Pikeville: Pikeville Medical Center
- Morehead: St. Claire Healthcare
Go to WildHealthTesting.com to schedule an appointment.
The sites will be open from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. beginning Friday, August 27th. Health workers will be conducting PCR tests only. Those who show up to get tested will receive results via e-mail by the next day. Walkup appointments are accepted.
Gov. Andy Beshear says the state is in a "critical situation" and has moved to unchartered territory. He says hospitalizations have increased every day for the last 42 days and 1/3 of all hospitals are reporting critical staffing shortages. The governor also says people are showing up to the ER for COVID-19 tests and it's taking resources away from people already in the ER.
Beshear says yesterday's COVID-19 numbers (nearly 5k new cases and 65 deaths) would have led him to declare a statewide masking mandate. Of course that decision is now up to the legislature.
— Austin Pollack (@AustinPollackTV) August 26, 2021
"As horrible as last year's surge was, we were never in a position where doctors are worried they'd need to choose between treating a patient who can't breathe because of COVID or treating a patient who's bleeding out because of a car accident," said Gov. Beshear. "That is the strain our hospitals are under."
The governor says efforts to increase health care and hospital capacity include:
- Deploying the Kentucky National Guard to support COVID-19 response efforts in hospitals
- Requesting FEMA strike teams for understaffed hospitals
- Providing COVID-19 testing assistance to some Kentucky hospitals
The National Guard will head to some Kentucky hospitals starting on September 1st.
