NEPTUNE BEACH, Fla. – Between a rise in COVID-19 cases from the highly-contagious omicron variant, people traveling and getting together for the holidays, there’s a surge in demand for testing for the virus.
Finding a place to get tested can once again be challenging at times.
News4JAX stopped by the only one of Jacksonville’s city-run sites open Thursday, and there were long lines.
There was a steady stream of patients at the testing site in the former Kmart parking lot in Neptune Beach Thursday. The site, paid for by the city of Jacksonville and run by Telescope Health, is not open again until Monday.
“People are coming from everywhere,” said Telescope Health’s testing operations manager Ezra Thomas. “We are seeing them from South Florida all the way from Georgia, they’re coming here to get tested.”
The setup has been in place for months offering screenings at no cost to patients.
On Thursday, workers saw the longest lines in a long time. They wrapped around the back of the building.
“We have the ability to do well over 300 a day, and that’s what we’re planning to do today,” Thomas said.
They reached capacity around 1:30 p.m. They tested 385 people for the day. The day prior, they tested 350.
TESTING SITE UPDATE: Our Neptune Beach testing site has reached capacity for the day. We will again be offering Rapid Tests & PCR Tests on 12/27 when we open @ 7am - we recommend individuals arrive early before we reach capacity. @CityofJax #Jacksonville #ilovejax
— Telescope Health (@telescopehealth) December 23, 2021
With the omicron variant being so contagious, doctors underscore the importance of testing.
“It is very important for patients during this time of the year that have respiratory symptoms to be seen at this time of the year to be sure that they’re not harboring this infection and eventually passing it along to a loved one,” said Saman Soleymani, M.D.
Soleymani co-owns Avecina Medical, which offers private testing. He said positivity rates at his clinics are as high as they’ve been.
He noted cases are increasing rapidly locally and recommended if someone tests positive they:
- Quarantine for a minimum of seven to 10 days
- Stay away from others until you test negative
- Drink lots of water and take vitamins
Most of the city-run testing sites closed Wednesday or Thursday for the Christmas holiday.
RELATED: These city COVID-19 testing, vaccine sites are closing Thursday, Friday | List of COVID-19 testing sites in Northeast Florida
The Clanzel T. Brown Community Center, Lane Wiley Community Center, Emmett Reed Community Center and Cuba Hunter Community Center are all closed until Monday.