Bay County residents can now get free, rapid coronavirus tests.
County leaders say rapid antigen tests are now available at the Lynn Haven Sports Complex, located at 2201 Recreation Drive, the only county-operated testing site.
Residents who have coronavirus symptoms - fever, cough, shortness of breath - can make an appointment for a test online.
Operating hours for the Lynn Haven testing site are Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Tuesday and Thursday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Here's the county's latest COVID-19 testing data from the Florida Department of Health in Bay County:
- Since April, the county has reported 6,146 positive COVID-19 cases.
- Overall, 34,625 tests have been performed. Of those, 28,531 have been negative.
- The county’s latest seven-day (Sept 23 - 29) positivity rate - the percentage of tests that have come back positive - is 8.51%.
“Bay County has been committed to providing free testing opportunities for our citizens for several months now in an effort to slow the spread of this disease,” said Bay County Commission Chairman Philip “Griff” Griffitts in a recent press release. “We are excited to now be able to offer the public the rapid result testing that will allow people to know their status in minutes instead of days.”
The rapid test results are expected within 20 minutes. Residents can wait at the site to find out if they've tested positive or they can receive a text message.
Though county health care workers are confirming positive rapid test results with a lab test, they won’t automatically double check negative rapid test results. But people who receive a negative result may request a follow-up lab test, Valerie Sale, Bay County's public information officer, explained in an email.
The Food and Drug Administration offers this advice about rapid, antigen tests on its website: “Positive results are usually highly accurate but negative results may need to be confirmed with a molecular test.”
While residents can opt for a lab test instead of a rapid test, that's not what county health officials are seeing, Sale wrote. "People want the rapid results testing, which is why we are offering it."
