SALISBURY TWP., Pa. - Hospital officials say they don’t want to test people who don’t have COVID-19 symptoms.
Lehigh Valley Health Network officials say you’ll need to be assessed by a doctor or telemedicine before going to a center. Rich Levy is with the hospital group. He says they want to keep the testing environment free of anything but people who need to be tested for the virus.
We have the test, but we don't know what, you know, how many people are going to be affected and need to be tested. So we need to keep those kits for people who really have the symptoms. We can't just test everybody," Levy.
A few locations opened Wednesday, with nearly 100 people being tested that day. Once the testing is complete the swabs go to the lab where results take 3 to 4 days. And they’re working on a new test that will produce results even faster - in 8 hours.
Ronald Walsh is with Health Network Laboratories, which currently runs all testing in the area.
"Once we launch our internal testing right now, we would have a capacity of at least 75 samples per day, but we're doing everything possible to maximize our capacity. So it may end up being hundreds of samples a day that we're able to turn around in a timely fashion, to give the needed answers to our providers," Walsh.
Lehigh Valley Health Network is LVHN is waiving the fee for online video assessments. Anyone experiencing symptoms can call the phone number on the hospital’s website or download the app for more information.
COVID-19 assess and test locations, run by Lehigh Valley Health Network, are now up and running in and around the Lehigh Valley.
Lehigh Valley Health Network urges anyone with symptoms to call 1-888-402-LVHN or the app MyLVHN.
Testing Site Locations:
LVPG Express Care Whitehall
2741 MacArthur RoadLVPG Pocono
1655 W. Main St., StroudsburgLVPG Palmerton
528 Delaware Ave.LVPG Macungie
6451 Village LaneLVPG Richland Twp.
320 W. Pumping Station Rd.LVPG Schuylkill
35 Sillyman St., CressonaLVPG Hazleton
140 N. Sherman Court- LVPG Nazareth
863 Nazareth Pike
