Coronavirus Tests Open To All El Cerrito, Contra Costa Residents
EL CERRITO, CA — Any El Cerrito or Contra Costa County resident who believes they need a coronavirus test will now be able to get one, regardless of insurance, ability to pay or whether they have symptoms, Contra Costa Health Services announced Thursday morning.
Testing is available by appointment at eight sites: five drive-thru testing sites operated by the county and three walk-up sites operated by the state.
At the drive-thru sites in Antioch, Concord, Martinez, Pittsburg, San Pablo and San Ramon, patients with appointments are tested in their car.
At the state-run sites which opened Wednesday in Brentwood, Pinole and Walnut Creek, patients make an appointment for a walk-in test.
COVID-19 test results are available within a few days.
To make an appointment to get tested, residents first need to call 844-421-0804 between 8 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. daily.
There is no up-front cost, nor do county residents need medical insurance to get tested. However, for those have health insurance, their insurance will be billed.
Previously, tests were only offered for patients with symptoms of illness.
County officials say this increased access to testing will help reach its goal for easing social restrictions in the current shelter-in-place order, which lasts through May.
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"We need to test many more county residents to get a better sense of how widespread COVID-19 is in our community, and to help prevent its spread," said Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors Chair Candace Andersen. "Testing will also give us a better idea of when we can relax the current health orders."
Between 300 and 400 patients are tested daily in the county, but CCHS hopes to test about five times as many people.
As of Thursday morning in Contra Costa County, 16,150 county residents have been tested; of those, 985 tested positive. The county says 29 deaths are attributed to the virus, with 19 residents currently hospitalized for coronavirus.
More information about community COVID-19 testing in Contra Costa County is posted at Coronavirus.cchealth.org/testing.
While the county says residents do not need symptoms to get tested, symptoms that may warrant a test include cough, shortness of breath, fever, chills, fatigue, muscle ache, sore throat, headache, vomiting, nausea, diarrhea, recent loss of taste or smell, or confusion, particularly in older adults.
Full coronavirus coverage: Coronavirus In California: What To Know
This article originally appeared on the El Cerrito Patch
