Coronavirus test sites have opened and closed throughout Tampa Bay over the last several months. Here is an updated list of where you can get tested for the novel coronavirus this fall.
Most are a drive-thru style where people wait in their cars and a medical professional uses a long swab to collect a sample from the patients nose. Many are free, but some do require people provide insurance information or payment after the fact.
Several sites are requiring people to make appointments beforehand. Wait times for results vary, but range from two to 12 days based on the site, laboratory and current demand.
Here are the criteria, hours and protocol for each test site. This information will change depending on the supply of tests and the latest government orders. Providers with an asterisk operate in a number of counties.
Appointments required. The call center is open Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Days vary based on site.
8 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., daily.
Monday Friday, 8:30 a.m. 4 p.m.
Location provided once appointment is scheduled
An appointment is required and can be made by calling 727-824-6900. The test is free to patients, regardless of insurance.
5 to 8 p.m., Thursdays. Also on Tuesdays in Pinellas Park.
Appointments are not required, but can be made calling 727-824-8181 and selecting option 0 or visiting www.chcpinellas.org
8 a.m. to 3 p.m., Tuesdays through Saturdays.
Tropicana Field Parking Lot 2, located on the west side of the stadium off 16th Street S, St. Petersburg.
You need not be a Pinellas resident to get tested and no insurance information is necessary. Identification and a phone number will be requested. No appointments are being taken. Testing will be offered on a first-come, first-served basis.
Daily. Hours vary by location.
Testing is available to anyone older than 18, regardless of symptoms, and is free to the public.
The sites typically operate from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., based on appointments.
CVS offers testing at dozens of its locations throughout Tampa Bay, including in Bradenton, Brandon, Clearwater, Dunedin, Lakeland, Largo, Lutz, Madeira Beach, Oldsmar, Pinellas Park, St. Petersburg, Tampa and Tarpon Springs. People can choose a location once theyve completed an online screening.
CVS is making testing available to anyone experiencing symptoms who meets the requirements listed on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website. Patients must first book appointments by visiting CVS.com.
The Tampa Bay stores have the capacity to test up to 50 people a day. All testing will take place inside a persons car. No walk-ups will be accepted and no testing will take place inside stores.
Mornings, Monday through Friday. The Clearwater site is only open Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
A doctors referral is encouraged. If not, you will be screened while in line to see if you meet requirements from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
For patients without insurance, the cost of the COVID-19 lab test is $85. Payment is not due at testing. BayCare is working with government agencies to secure funding for patients that are unable to pay.
8 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Tests are available on a limited basis daily. Other Tampa Bay locations offer screening and testing COVID-19 at their health centers. Find more information at medexpress.com.
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Trailing in the polls, the president in recent weeks has increasingly held crowded campaign events in defiance of public health guidelines and sometimes state and local governments. When he accepted the nomination on the final day of the Republican National Convention, he invited more than 1,000 supporters to the South Lawn of the White House and has held a number of rallies around the country since, often with hundreds and even thousands of people jammed into tight spaces, many if not most without masks.
There is no one closer to Mr. Trump than Ms. Hicks, who returned to the White House this year after leaving her position as communications director in 2018, and on Wednesday traveled with the president on Air Force One to Minnesota. She began feeling sick around the time of the campaign rally he held there, according to one person familiar with the events, and was quarantined on the return flight to Washington, where she disembarked from the back entrance of the plane.
Her positive diagnosis came on Thursday, according to the person familiar with her case, but the White House made no announcement about the situation, and Kayleigh McEnany, the White House press secretary, who had also been on the plane and exposed to Ms. Hicks, then held a briefing with reporters without mentioning it or wearing a mask.
Only after Bloomberg News reported Ms. Hickss condition did Mr. Trump confirm it during an appearance on Thursday night on Sean Hannitys show on Fox News, where he said he was waiting for his own test results.
The positive tests will undercut Mr. Trumps effort to change the subject of the campaign away from a pandemic that polls show most Americans believe he has mishandled and onto political terrain he considers more favorable. The president has sought to focus voter attention instead on violence in cities, his Supreme Court nomination, mail-in ballots and Mr. Bidens relationship with liberals.
Oct. 8, 2020, 12:51 a.m. ET
Mr. Trump is the latest world leader to become infected. Prime Minister Boris Johnson of Britain was so sick that he had to be hospitalized before later recovering. Prince Charles likewise contracted the virus, as have the leaders of Brazil, Honduras, Guatemala and Bolivia.
But the symbolism of an infected American president could rattle allies, as well as governors and business owners trying to assess when and how to reopen or keep open shops, schools, parks, beaches, restaurants, factories and other workplaces. Eager to restore a semblance of normal life before the election, Mr. Trump has dismissed health concerns to demand that schools reopen, college football resume play and businesses return to full operation.
An intern in Gov. Gavin Newsoms administration and another state employee who interacted with members of the governors staff have both tested positive for the coronavirus, though neither came in contact with Newsom or his top advisors, the governor and his spokesman said Wednesday.
We are going through a contact-tracing process led by the Department of Public Health, and they have both been isolated and we are working back from that frame to make sure that everybody is appropriately tested, Newsom said during a briefing in Winters, Calif., on Wednesday.
The governors spokesman, Nathan Click, said that whenever a state employee tests positive for the coronavirus and was in a government office, state policy requires that shared spaces be deep-cleaned which was done where appropriate in these cases and that employees who had contact with that person, or with the office, quarantine themselves and seek testing.
Click declined to identify the employees who tested positive or their office locations, citing privacy laws. Newsom identified the governors office staff member as an intern and said the other employee worked for a separate state agency. Neither worked in the suite of Capitol offices occupied by Newsom and his senior staff, the governor said.
The governors office was alerted about the state employee Monday and about the governors office staff member earlier this week, Click said. Once notified, the governors office immediately began appropriate protocols such as contact tracing and asking employees to quarantine themselves if they had come in contact with the two people who tested positive.
We wish both individuals who tested positive well in their recovery, Click said.
Newsom said Wednesday that he has been tested for the virus on multiple occasions when the circumstances warranted, including when he visited a state prison and when he met with President Trump in Sacramento in mid-September during a briefing on the deadly wildfires in the state.
The last time he was tested was an hour before meeting with the president, and the results were negative, Newsom said. Neither state employee who tested positive attended the event with the president, Click said.
Ive never been tested positive. Ive been tested negative on multiple times, Newsom said Wednesday.
Newsoms comments came almost a week after disclosures that Trump and First Lady Melania Trump tested positive for the coronavirus, with the president requiring several days of hospitalization with COVID-19 symptoms. The White House is now grappling with an outbreak of the virus among senior advisors to Trump as well as support staff and others who came in contact with those infected.
During a news conference Monday, Newsom took a subtle jab at Trump and others for being dismissive about the use of masks to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
Well continue to maintain our vigilance. Well continue not to send mixed messages as it relates to importance and imperative of wearing masks or minimize the impact of this disease on peoples health, lives that are lost, Newsom said.
Click said that the governors office has reduced staff levels at the Capitol, where Newsom and his senior advisors work, because of the pandemic and has scrapped most in-person meetings in favor of videoconference calls.
Colleges, schools and childcare centers remain hotspots for COVID-19 infections as the number of outbreaks increases statewide.
The Colorado Department of Health and Environment confirmed at least 16 new outbreaks in education facilities this week, adding them to the 46 others that have occurred since the last week in August when most schools began.
As of Wednesday, there were at least 2,211 confirmed cases among those attending college, school or daycare.
The majority of these new cases occurred at University of Colorado Boulder, which, according to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, had at least 1,527 confirmed cases and 168 suspected cases as of Wednesday. In response to a spike in cases, CU shut down on-campus classes Sept. 23.
Though the CU outbreak is still active, the number of new cases is now in a sharp decline according to the universitys COVID dashboard.
Two new public health orders went into effect in Boulder County on Wednesday.
CU is one of three colleges that the state health department has flagged as having widespread, communitywide disease transmission. CDPHE now tracks all cases associated with those schools together, rather than separating them out into individual outbreaks associated with a particular area of campus.
The European health regulator said on Tuesday it would launch a rolling review of the coronavirus vaccine being developed by Pfizer PFE, +0.82% and BioNTech BNTX, +0.74%, days after it announced a similar decision for the competing vaccine of AstraZeneca AZN, -0.26% and the University of Oxford.
- A rolling review means the regulator will start examining the data from laboratory, animal and human testing in real time, without waiting for the whole set to be submitted at the end of the so-called Phase 3 trials.
- This does not mean that a conclusion can be reached yet on the vaccines safety and effectiveness, as much of the evidence is still to be submitted to the committee, the European Medicines Agency said in its release.
- As it did in the AstraZeneca case, the EMA said it had launched the process because preliminary results from nonclinical and early clinical studies in adults (...) suggest that the vaccine triggers the production of antibodies and T cells that target the virus.
- The chief executives of all major global pharmaceuticals companies pledged last month, in an unprecedented joint release, in response to pressure to speed up the research, to continue to adhere to high scientific and ethical standards regarding the conduct of clinical trials and only submit [a vaccine] for approval or emergency use authorization after demonstrating safety and efficacy through a Phase 3 clinical study.
Opinion:AstraZenecas coronavirus vaccine setback shows why Big Pharma prefers to be safe than sorry. Which is good news
The outlook: The rolling review will save time on the approval process, but doesnt change anything to the clinical trials process, which will develop at pace. The regulators decision isnt a political one, and contrary to what has happened in the U.S., there has been no pressure from European governments on the regulator to speed up the approval of vaccines currently being developed. The EMA insists in its release that it will wait for all the data from the completed trials before it makes a decision. But once they are in, the bureaucratic process of decision will be faster than it would have been for an ordinary drug.
Read:Second coronavirus wave could delay Europes recovery: ECB President Lagarde
TheWest Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR) reports as of 10:00 a.m., October 7,2020, there have been 602,802 total confirmatorylaboratory results received for COVID-19, with 17,139 totalcases and 369 deaths.
DHHR has confirmed the deaths of a 56-year old male from KanawhaCounty, a 65-year old male from Kanawha County, a 67-year old male from WyomingCounty, a 72-year old female from Harrison County, and an 81 year old male fromFayette County. It takes each of us doing our part to slow the spread of this disease,said Bill J. Crouch, DHHR Cabinet Secretary. Our sympathies are extended tothe families of these West Virginians.
CASESPER COUNTY: Barbour(116), Berkeley (1,148), Boone (262), Braxton (16), Brooke (124), Cabell (930),Calhoun (28), Clay (43), Doddridge (36), Fayette (664), Gilmer (49), Grant(163), Greenbrier (138), Hampshire (112), Hancock (160), Hardy (95), Harrison(473), Jackson (298), Jefferson (463), Kanawha (2,965), Lewis (42), Lincoln(191), Logan (673), Marion (311), Marshall (186), Mason (151), McDowell (96),Mercer (441), Mineral (179), Mingo (414), Monongalia (2,119), Monroe (155),Morgan (67), Nicholas (129), Ohio (392), Pendleton (54), Pleasants (20),Pocahontas (60), Preston (162), Putnam (647), Raleigh (571), Randolph (281),Ritchie (13), Roane (59), Summers (59), Taylor (150), Tucker (43), Tyler (17),Upshur (146), Wayne (425), Webster (9), Wetzel (65), Wirt (12), Wood (387),Wyoming (130).
Please note that delays may be experienced withthe reporting of information from the local health department to DHHR. As casesurveillance continues at the local health department level, it may reveal thatthose tested in a certain county may not be a resident of that county, or eventhe state as an individual in question may have crossed the state border to betested. Such is the case of Mercer and Waynecounties in this report.
Pleasevisit the dashboard located at www.coronavirus.wv.gov for more information.
Free COVID-19 testinglocations are available today in Berkeley,Harrison, Kanawha, Logan, Mason, Monongalia, Putnam, Taylor, Wayne, and Wyomingcounties:
Berkeley County, October7, 4:30 PM 7:30 PM, Mountain Ridge Middle School, 2771 Gerrardstown Road, Gerrardstown,WV
Harrison County, October7, 10:00 AM 3:00 PM, Robert C. Byrd High School, 1 Eagle Way, Clarksburg, WV
Kanawha County, October 7,3:00 PM 6:00 PM, Bible Center Church, 1 Bible Center Way, Charleston, WV (flushots offered)
Logan County, October 7, 10:00AM 2:00 PM, Old 84 Lumber Building, 100 Recovery Road, Peach Creek, WV
Mason County, October 7, 4:00PM 6:00 PM, Faith Baptist Church, 2550 2nd Street, Mason, WV
Monongalia County, October7, 9:00 AM 4:00 PM, West Virginia University, Student Recreation Center, 2001Rec Center Drive, Morgantown, WV
Putnam County, October 7,1:00 PM 5:00 PM, Poca Driving Range, 1 Dot Way, Poca, WV
Taylor County, October 7,12:00 PM 2:00 PM, First Baptist Church of Grafton, 2034 Webster Pike (US Rt.119 South), Grafton, WV
Wayne County, October 7, 9:00AM 1:00 PM, Wayne County Health Department, 217 Kenova Ave, Wayne, WV 25570
Wyoming County, October 7,8:30 AM 10:30 AM, Christian Fellowship Worship Center, 1877 Bear Hole Road, Pineville,WV
Testing is available to everyone, includingasymptomatic individuals. For upcoming testing locations, pleasevisit https://dhhr.wv.gov/COVID-19/pages/testing.aspx.
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Alaska on Wednesday reported 116 new cases of COVID-19, according to the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services COVID-19 dashboard.
One new death reported Wednesday involved a male Anchorage resident in his 70s, the state health department said.
In total, 59 Alaskans have died with COVID-19 since the pandemic began here in March.
Wednesday marked two straight weeks that Alaska has seen new daily case counts exceeding 100, the longest such streak since the pandemic began.
Statewide as of Wednesday, 34 people with COVID-19 were hospitalized while another 12 patients were awaiting test results.
Of the 116 new cases of COVID-19 involving residents, there were 56 in Anchorage; 28 in Fairbanks; five in North Pole; three in Seward; two in Chugiak; two in Kotzebue; two in Juneau; one in Bethel; one in Eagle River; one in Healy; and one in Big Lake.
Among communities smaller than 1,000 not identified to protect confidentiality, there was one new case in the Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area; one in the Northwest Arctic Borough; and 12 in the Nome Census Area.
No new nonresident cases were reported on Wednesday.
It wasnt clear how many of the people involved in the new cases were showing symptoms of the virus when they tested positive.
In total, 9,861 residents and nonresidents in Alaska have tested positive for the virus since March.
The states test positivity rate as of Wednesday was 4.28% over a seven-day rolling average, the highest it has been. The rate reflects the number of positive results divided by total tests performed. Health officials say levels over 5% may indicate communities arent doing enough testing.
With no coronavirus vaccines approved for full use, many people are turning to vitamins and other supplements to bolster their immune system and help them fight off COVID-19.
While plenty of posts on social media push these supplements as personal coronavirus shields, Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, cautioned last month that most so-called immune boosting supplements actually do nothing.
However, there is one supplement that may be of use to the immune system vitamin D, also known as the sunshine vitamin.
If you are deficient in vitamin D, that does have an impact on your susceptibility to infection, Fauci said in an Instagram Live interview with actress Jennifer Garner. So I would not mind recommending and I do it myself taking vitamin D supplements.
Fauci was not speaking about COVID-19 specifically, but about vitamin Ds general role in supporting the immune system in particular, about the benefits of this nutrient for people who are deficient.
Right now, the National Institutes of Health says theres not enough evidence to show that vitamin D can prevent or treat COVID-19.
But there is enough evidence that scientists are exploring the benefits of this and other supplements against the coronavirus.
Earlier research showed that vitamin D reduces the risk of respiratory tract infections other than COVID-19. The benefits varied quite a bit among these studies, but vitamin D supplementation seemed to be more helpful for people who were deficient in this nutrient.
More recent research suggests that vitamin D deficiency may increase the risk of coronavirus infection and severity of COVID-19.
For example, some studies found that COVID-19 deaths tend to be higher in countries farther away from the equator, where many people are deficient in vitamin D due to the reduced amount of sunlight, especially during winter.
We make vitamin D by being exposed to sunlight, and in the colder months people can become deficient, said Nicole Avena, PhD, an assistant professor of neuroscience at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York.
Many factors could account for the greater number of COVID-19 cases in more northerly latitudes. But a study published last month in JAMA Network Open reinforces the importance of vitamin D for a healthy immune system.
In our study, patients who have lower vitamin D levels were more likely to test positive for COVID-19, said study author Dr. David Meltzer, a professor of medicine at The University of Chicago Medicine.
This trend still held when they tried to control for other factors age, obesity, other medical conditions that might worsen COVID-19 and are linked to lower vitamin D levels.
Other studies show that patients with lower vitamin D levels who are diagnosed with COVID-19 tend to have worse outcomes.
One of these was published last month in PLoS ONE. Researchers found that people hospitalized for COVID-19 who were deficient in vitamin D were more likely to have severe symptoms or die from COVID-19.
Not all research, though, supports the link between vitamin D and COVID-19.
A UK biobank study published earlier this year in Diabetes & Metabolic Syndrome: Clinical Research & Reviews found no link between vitamin D levels and coronavirus infection.
However, Meltzer and his colleagues pointed out in their paper that the UK researchers measured vitamin D levels up to 14 years before COVID-19 testing and didnt look at whether people had been treated with vitamin D since then.
This could have weakened the observed link between vitamin D levels and coronavirus infection, they wrote.
Scientists are also eyeing other nutrients as potential treatments for COVID-19, including zinc and vitamin C, both touted for their cold-fighting benefits.
In one study, researchers from Spain reported that patients with low blood levels of zinc were more likely to die from COVID-19.
Their results were presented last week at the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Disease (ESCMID) Conference on Coronavirus Disease. This research has not been peer-reviewed, so it should be viewed with some caution.
All of these studies are observational, meaning researchers collected data on people over time, rather than assigning people to different treatments. That makes it impossible to show a cause-and-effect relationship between vitamin D and COVID-19.
Whats needed are randomized controlled trials (RCTs), the gold standard of clinical research. Some of these are already underway.
In one study carried out in Spain, researchers gave calcifediol, an active form of vitamin D, to 50 people hospitalized with COVID-19. Another group of 26 patients didnt receive vitamin D.
All patients were treated equally with hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin.
Only one of the patients treated with vitamin D ended up in the intensive care unit, while half of the untreated patients did.
There are some imperfections [to the study] its not a very large study, there are some slight imbalances between the groups but its pretty impressive, said Meltzer.
While this study used vitamin D to treat people who already had COVID-19, Meltzer says the nutrient might work equally well at keeping people out of the hospital.
One possibility is that vitamin D is not preventing COVID-19, he said, but is causing people who are infected to have such minimal symptoms that they never get tested, never get found.
More research is needed to know if this is true.
Two randomized controlled trials starting at the University of Chicago should provide some answers. In both, people will be treated with vitamin D and then followed to see if they contract the coronavirus and how severe their symptoms are.
One trial focuses on healthcare workers. The other will recruit people from the community, with an emphasis on enrolling Black and Hispanic people, who are at high risk for both vitamin D deficiency and COVID-19.
At the Cleveland Clinic, researchers are enrolling people into a study to see if vitamin C or zinc or a combination of the two can reduce the duration of COVID-19 symptoms. Patients will be given the supplements after they have tested positive for COVID-19.
How soon results are available from these studies depends on how quickly researchers can enroll people into the studies. Meltzer says study volunteers are essential for the success of COVID-19 research.
People who can enter clinical trials do a tremendous service to society, he said.
Although Meltzer is enthusiastic about the potential benefits of vitamin D, he cautions that we wont really know until the randomized controlled trials are finished.
This doesnt mean we should let down our guard or not do any of the other things were doing, he said. I certainly wouldnt stop wearing a mask and go to a big party thinking everything was going to be OK because I was taking vitamin D.
Even before these studies are finished, there are good reasons to consider taking a vitamin D supplement.
The vast majority of Americans are vitamin D deficient and could probably benefit from some modest level of vitamin D supplementation, at very little risk, said Meltzer.
In the United States, an estimated 41 percent of adults are deficient in vitamin D. People with darker skin are at greater risk 63 percent of Hispanic people and 82 percent of Black people have low vitamin D levels.
Other factors increase the risk of vitamin D deficiency, including age, limited sun exposure, obesity, and certain medical conditions.
Avena says it is difficult to get enough vitamin D from foods. So taking a supplement may be advised, she says, but always check with your doctor first.
Meltzer says he takes 4,000 international units (IU) per day. The National Institutes of Health says this is the upper limit of what is safe for the vast majority of people.
Dont consume more than 4,000 IU per day of vitamin D without your doctors permission, said Avena. It exceeds the safe upper limits of intake.
Larger doses can be toxic and should only be taken under medical supervision.
Avena says zinc may also be helpful once you feel symptoms of a cold coming on.
She recommends taking between 13.3 milligrams and 23 milligrams of zinc every 2 hours while you have cold symptoms, but no longer than 1 week. This is the dose found in over-the-counter gummies and lozenges.
As with vitamin D, we dont yet know if zinc will reduce symptoms of COVID-19.
While most people get enough zinc from food sources, some groups vegetarians, people with gastrointestinal diseases, people who misuse alcohol are at higher risk of zinc deficiency and might want to consider taking a supplement.
TheWest Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR) reports as of 10:00 a.m., October 6,2020, there have been 599,040 total confirmatorylaboratory results received for COVID-19, with 16,936 totalcases and 364 deaths.
DHHR has confirmed the deaths of an 82-year old male from KanawhaCounty, a 64-year old female from Cabell County, and a 72-year old male fromCabell County. We offer our deepest sympathy as our state grieves furtherloss, said Bill J. Crouch, DHHR Cabinet Secretary.
CASESPER COUNTY: Barbour(109), Berkeley (1,118), Boone (259), Braxton (13), Brooke (123), Cabell (914),Calhoun (28), Clay (37), Doddridge (35), Fayette (662), Gilmer (49), Grant(163), Greenbrier (138), Hampshire (112), Hancock (155), Hardy (95), Harrison(464), Jackson (295), Jefferson (451), Kanawha (2,930), Lewis (41), Lincoln(189), Logan (664), Marion (311), Marshall (186), Mason (149), McDowell (96),Mercer (449), Mineral (178), Mingo (410), Monongalia (2,115), Monroe (155),Morgan (65), Nicholas (125), Ohio (384), Pendleton (53), Pleasants (20),Pocahontas (60), Preston (161), Putnam (641), Raleigh (567), Randolph (280),Ritchie (13), Roane (56), Summers (59), Taylor (147), Tucker (43), Tyler (17),Upshur (127), Wayne (426), Webster (9), Wetzel (64), Wirt (12), Wood (384),Wyoming (130).
Pleasenote that delays may be experienced with the reporting of information from thelocal health department to DHHR. As case surveillance continues at the localhealth department level, it may reveal that those tested in a certain countymay not be a resident of that county, or even the state as an individual inquestion may have crossed the state border to be tested.Suchis the case of Hardy and Wetzel counties in this report.
Pleasevisit the dashboard located at www.coronavirus.wv.gov for more information.
Free COVID-19 testinglocations are available today in Barbour, Boone, Doddridge,Fayette, Kanawha, Marion, Putnam, Taylor, and Upshur counties:
Barbour County, October6, 10:00 AM 2:00 PM, Barbour County Fair Grounds, 113 Fair Grounds Way,Belington, WV
Boone County, October 6,1:00 PM 4:00 PM, Boone County Health Department, 213 Kenmore Drive, Danville,WV
Doddridge County, October6, 1:00 PM 6:00 PM, Doddridge County Park, 1252 Snowbird Road, West Union, WV
Fayette County, October6, 10:00 AM 2:00 PM, J.W. and Hazel Ruby WV Welcome Center, 55 Hazel RubyLane, Mt. Hope, WV
Kanawha County, October6, 9:00 AM 3:00 PM, Perrow Presbyterian Church, 5345 Big Tyler Road, CrossLanes, WV, (flu shots offered)
Marion County, October 6,12:00 PM 3:00 PM, Marion County Health Department, 300 Second Street,Fairmont, WV
Putnam County, October 6,9:00 AM 1:00 PM, Teays Valley Baptist Church, 3926 Teays Valley Road,Hurricane, WV
Taylor County, October 6,12:00 PM 2:00 PM, First Baptist Church of Grafton, 2034 Webster Pike (US Rt.119 South), Grafton, WV
Upshur County, October 6,12:00 PM 6:00 PM, Buckhannon-Upshur High School, 270 BU Drive, Buckhannon, WV
Testing is available to everyone, includingasymptomatic individuals. For upcoming testing locations, pleasevisit https://dhhr.wv.gov/COVID-19/pages/testing.aspx.
Members of the public in Japan will be given a dose of vaccine against the novel coronavirus for free, according to a health ministry policy approved Friday by its advisory panel, in a bid to curb serious and fatal cases of infection.
The policy addresses the first dose for everyone amid uncertainty at this stage over how many times a vaccine would need to be administered.
Photo illustration shows a disposable syringe with hypodermic needle, CORONA VIRUS written on a black board behind. (LightRocket/Getty/Kyodo)
Whether the policy will cover foreign residents in Japan has yet to be officially determined, a ministry official said, while offering his personal opinion that it would be natural to include them for the sake of public health.
The Japanese government is trying to secure enough vaccines by the first half of 2021 to administer to all members of the public, having earmarked a budget of 671.4 billion yen ($6.4 billion).
It has agreed with British drugmaker AstraZeneca Plc and U.S. pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc. to receive 120 million doses of vaccine from each company when successfully developed, and is also negotiating with U.S. firm Moderna Inc. for 40 million doses or more.
In case a vaccination causes serious side effects, the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry plans to have the state, not companies, redress patients and pay damages through a law revision at an extraordinary Diet session expected to start later this month, it said.
