Final 2 COVID-19 testing sites open today as city expands capacity

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Two more COVID-19 testing sites are opening in Jacksonville Thursday as the city and neighboring counties wrestle with a surge in new COVID-19 cases. Local hospitals have seen beds fill up with an influx of new patients.

A day after the Lane Wiley Senior Center on Wiley Road opened for testing, sites at the Emmett Reed and Cuba Hunter community centers will begin administering tests on Thursday.

On Monday, weather concerns halted COVID-19 testing at a Neptune Beach facility, and then the testing site closed early once again Tuesday because it had reached capacity.

The telehealth provider said Tuesday its capacity was 250 tests but noted that work is underway on software updates that will expand its testing capacity throughout the week. Then on Wednesday, Telescope Health announced the Neptune Beach site had reached capacity again -- but this time it had tested 400 patients before closing for the day.

Gail and Bob, who didn’t want to give their last name, were both vaccinated, so they were shocked and disappointed when they came down with the virus. They went to Lane Wiley on Wednesday to try and get a negative test.

“We are going to be tested now to make sure we are clear. I don’t have any symptoms,” Gail said.

Asked what would have happened if they weren’t vaccinated, Bob had a quick answer: “I would have been dead. I guarantee it.”

The Neptune Beach site, located at the former Kmart on Atlantic Boulevard, is one of two new sites that opened Monday in response to popular demand. It is currently the only site that is offering rapid tests, which might explain its popularity.

When the final set of COVID-19 testing sites open on Thursday, testing at the Department of Health’s Central Health Plaza will stop.

“For the health and safety of the community, the department’s testing services will be transferred to Emmett Reed and Cuba Hunter, where mass-testing will be indoors and the central focus,” the DOH said.

Doctors said about 20% of the people being tested at the community sites are testing positive and that number is even higher among children.

“We talked about in the past (that) kids are more resilient and avoid contracting COVID. We are not seeing that being the case anymore,” UF Health Dr. Chirag Patel said. “Thirty percent of kids being tested at UF Health are coming back positive for COVID.”

Below is a guide to the new testing sites, including hours and other details:

Duval County

Clanzel T. Brown Community Center

• Address: 4545 Moncrief Rd., Jacksonville, 32209
• Hours: 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday
• Vaccine: 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Sunday
• Notes: No appointment required, port-a-potties on site, only PCR tests offered (no rapid tests)

Lane Wiley Senior Center

• Address: 6710 Wiley Rd., Jacksonville, 32210
• Hours: 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday
• Vaccine: 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Sunday
• Notes: No appointment required, port-a-potties on site, only PCR tests offered (no rapid tests)

Emmett Reed Community Center

• Address: 1093 W. 6th St., Jacksonville, 32209
• Hours: 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday
• Vaccine: 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday
• Notes: No appointment required, only PCR tests offered (no rapid tests)

Cuba Hunter Community Center

• Address: 4380 Bedford Rd., Jacksonville, 32207
• Hours: 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday
• Vaccine: 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday
• Notes: No appointment required, only PCR tests offered (no rapid tests)

Former Kmart Shopping Center

• Address: 540 Atlantic Blvd., Neptune Beach, 32266
• Hours: 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday
• Vaccine: No vaccine offered
• Notes: Drive-thru; insured need insurance card, uninsured need Social Security number; only rapid tests offered at this time

St. Johns County

Visitor Information Center

• Address: 10 S. Castillo Dr., St. Augustine, 32084
• Hours: 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Monday through Friday
• Vaccine: None offered
• Notes: While the site initially required insurance or self-pay, the site will offer free vaccines starting Thursday. Anyone who has already been through the testing site can receive a refund and anyone who currently has an appointment scheduled will not be charged.

St. Johns County Agricultural Center

• Address: 3125 Agricultural Center Dr., St. Augustine, 32092
• Hours: 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Sunday
• Vaccine: None offered
• Notes: No appointment or insurance is required