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The Pennsylvania Department of Health will set up a COVID-19 testing clinic in Dickson City in response to the rapid increase of cases statewide.
				State DOH Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine said the drive-through and outdoor clinic will open Saturday in the former K-Mart parking lot at 1011 Scranton Carbondale Highway. Testing will be available daily from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. and continue through Nov. 24.
				&ldquo;Since the beginning of September, we have seen an increase of 2,276 cases in Lackawanna County, which gives us significant cause for concern,&rdquo; Levine said in a press release Wednesday. &ldquo;This testing site will be open to anyone who feels they need a test. It is important that even people with no symptoms who test positive isolate to stop the spread of COVID-19.&rdquo;
				The DOH contracted AMI Expeditionary Healthcare to provide testing in communities in need across the state. Lackawanna is the last county to receive testing from this contract. AMI has previously performed community testing in Centre, Columbia, Indiana, Berks, Northumberland, Lebanon, Huntingdon, Westmoreland, Blair and Bradford counties.
				The DOH provided details about the clinic:
				&#8226; Up to 440 patients can be tested daily.
				&#8226; Mid-nasal passage swab tests will be performed.
				&#8226; Testing is on a first-come, first-serve basis and is free.
				&#8226; Patients must be ages 3 and older and are not required to show symptoms of COVID-19 in order to be tested.
				&#8226; No appointment is necessary.
				&#8226; Patients are encouraged to bring a photo-ID or insurance card.
				&#8226; Registration will be completed on-site.
				&#8226; The turnaround time for testing results is two to seven days after testing.
				Individuals who are tested should self-quarantine while they await test results. Individuals who live with other people should self-quarantine in a private room and use a private bathroom if possible. Others living in the home with the individual awaiting test results should also stay at home. The department has <a href="https://www.health.pa.gov/topics/Documents/HAN/COVID-19%20Patient%20Instructions%20for%20Self%20Isolation.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">additional instructions</a> for individuals waiting for a COVID-19 test result.
				The DOH decides which counties to deploy testing based on the total number of confirmed cases in the last 14 days per 100,000 people, as well as, where outbreaks are happening, county population, and other metrics.
				This week, Lackawanna has the 58th-highest percent-positivity in the state at 6.3 %, an increase from the 4.1% from the previous week. The DOH said the increased testing in the county will assist in determining the prevalence of the virus and assist the county in moving forward. Other concerning counties, identified as those with percent positives above 5 percent, can be found on the <a href="https://www.health.pa.gov/topics/disease/coronavirus/Pages/Monitoring-Dashboard.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Early Warning Monitoring </a><a href="https://www.health.pa.gov/topics/disease/coronavirus/Pages/Monitoring-Dashboard.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Dashboard</a>. Each county is being monitored as the state continues to examine all available data.
				For the latest information for individuals, families, businesses and schools, visit Responding to COVID-19 on <a href="https://www.pa.gov/guides/responding-to-covid-19/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">pa.gov</a>.

PA DOH setting up COVID-19 testing clinic in Lackawanna County