Don’t count on a Whatcom COVID-19 test before attending a Thanksgiving event
As new cases surge in Washington state, public health officials are asking people to not be tested for COVID-19 as a way to screen themselves before attending Thanksgiving gatherings.
Officials in Whatcom County said the mobile testing sites operated by the health department and Whatcom Unified Command are at their maximum capacity.
“Many more people are seeking COVID-19 tests due to a sharp increase in virus activity and a desire to travel or gather for the holidays,” the Whatcom County Health Department said in a news release on Friday evening, Nov. 20.
COVID-19 tests are still being offered at the mobile sites in Whatcom County but people are being asked to use the service “judiciously,” the release states.
On Friday, the State Department of Health also asked the public to not seek screening tests ahead of Thanksgiving celebrations so they could ensure Washington residents with COVID-19 symptoms had access to tests.
If you’ve scheduled a non-essential test, please cancel your appointment, said Dr. Greg Stern, Whatcom County health officer.
Tests need to be reserved for those with COVID-19 symptoms, vulnerable populations, close contacts of people diagnosed with the illness, and people who require one before their medical procedures, the county health department said.
“At this time we aren’t limiting our testing services,” Stern said in the release, “but we are asking people who aren’t sick or at risk to abstain from testing right now. We need to make sure that testing isn’t delayed for those with the greatest need.”
Residents are being asked to celebrate Thanksgiving at home and only with people they live with, and people shouldn’t turn to St. Joseph hospital’s emergency department for travel-related testing.
“The emergency department at PeaceHealth St. Joseph does not currently provide standalone or non-urgent COVID-19 testing,” said Dr. Sudhakar Karlapudi, chief medical officer for PeaceHealth Northwest.
