Mercy Regional Medical Center will reduce hours and the number of COVID-19 diagnostic tests available at its free community testing site as of Monday. New hours and days will be from 8 a.m. to noon Monday through Thursday, and Saturday, limited to no more than 50 tests a day.
Because of limited local availability of testing, and laboratory capacity and supply constraints around the state, San Juan Basin Public Health and Mercy will need to temporarily prioritize use of this free public resource. This prioritization does not affect testing for COVID-19 for patients being hospitalized and refers only to the community testing operated by Mercy and supported by SJBPH.
People who live and work in La Plata and Archuleta counties should refer to the following prioritization:
High priority: People with COVID-19 symptoms and those notified of an exposure by SJBPH or another public health agency.Medium priority: People with no symptoms or identified exposure but who live or work with high-risk populations, people experiencing homelessness, employees of high-risk workplaces monitored by public health, health care workers, first responders and law enforcement.All others without a known exposure cannot be considered a priority for free community testing. Tests for these people remain available by appointment through private testing providers.The reduction in test availability at Mercy means La Plata County is unable to meet nationwide standards for testing capacity to most effectively control spread of infection. Prioritizing the remaining capacity at the community testing site will help ensure testing is available for those who need it most.
For more information visit, www.sjbpublichealth.org/testing.
