State health department hosts Boone County COVID-19 testing event
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services and the National Guard combined at Hickman High School for a free COVID-19 community testing event for Boone County residents on Monday.
The community testing event started at 7 a.m. and will continue until 7 p.m. It will start back up on Tuesday with the same schedule.
According to a health department news release, many Missouri counties have already participated in similar testing efforts in order for public health officials to learn more about the prevalence of COVID-19 transmission and how to treat the virus.
Kristie Miller a National Guard task force nurse said the joint task force of Army and Air tested around 200 to 250 patients just before noon. While a total of one thousand, two hundred appointments were set for the testing event for both Monday and Tuesday.
"Numbers and statistics say a lot," Miller said. "So the more people that we know that are asymptomatic and positive or asymptomatic and not, those are those are big things that we need to know, just from a just from a public health standpoint."
The only requirement for receiving testing is to be a Missouri resident, the release said. Residents do not have to be experiencing virus-related symptoms to receive a test.
Appointments are all filled up for the community testing event in Boone County, but you can sign up for the waiting list on the health department website.
Miller said even though all the appointments are filled anyone who wants to get tested can still call the number to check in case people don't show up for their appointments or they receive more appointments.
The news release said the community testing events were put on as part of Gov. Mike Parson’s reopening plan announced on May 21 to increase coronavirus testing volume.
The goal of the community testing is to test nearly 10,000 people over a 10-day period.
Boone, Cape Girardeau, Greene, Jackson, Jefferson and St. Charles counties will host community events.
"The Missouri National Guard is here to help," Miller said. "That's why we're here, we're from these communities. So, that what I think our biggest message is. We're here to help the citizens of Missouri."
Tracy and John Hager took part in the free testing events today as they’ve heard how easy it is to be asymptomatic and pass along COVID-19.
Tracy Hager said the test itself wasn't as bad as she imagined but it was worth the small sting to get very helpful information.
Both John and Tracy Hager said they would recommend anyone that is able to take advantage of the opportunity to get tested to do so.
“I think that it's helpful, Tracy Hager said. "I would imagine also for the community in the state...our county and city leaders and Governor Parson are going to be looking at the data as they're testing lots of communities to help make decisions about opening up the economy. And so not only does it give us our own personal information but it's going to go with it into the community.”
The National Guard is not set up to aid in protests happening around the area over the killing of George Floyd.
Stay up-to-date on this developing story here and on ABC 17 News at 5 p.m. & 6 p.m.
