With Thanksgiving around the corner, guests are bound to come, bring warmth, hugs, and gifts, and in no way should that get hampered, that’s why Columbus Public Health Officials are offering its residents free at-home Covid-19 test kits from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Tuesday through a drive-thru set up at Celeste Center, 717 East 17th Ave, on the Ohio State Fairgrounds.
The location has also been chosen because of familiarity, as the same location was earlier offering COVID inoculations and drive-thru testing.
The residents of Franklin County have been permitted to collect up to 12 at-home test kits, at the event, all of which are subject to the availability of the kits.
The health officials are encouraging people to not only test the guests and visitors but also themselves prior to and post these events, in a manner of precaution. They also told, those testing positive should immediately isolate themselves, even from those who have received the vaccine, and should avoid going to gatherings or events. They are also advised to contact the nearby health officials and inform those who’ve recently been in contact with them about the positive test result.
As per the Commissioner of Columbus Public Health, Dr. Mysheika Roberts, “Testing before you gather adds another layer of protection, especially for those who are at greater risk of serious illness and those too young to get vaccinated, “The availability of these kits has also been extended to local libraries, recreation centers as per the Health Officials’ release.
This comes ahead of the rising cases in Ohio, in the festive season. Thursday marked a new high in the cases in the state, in the last three weeks taking the number of new cases to 6,615 in a single day.
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The most attention-seeking of them all was Franklin County, as it reported over 445 new cases, which as per state data is the highest since early October.
The need for vaccination drives has continuously been emphasized upon by state authorities. 60% of the eligible population has already received at least 1 dose of the vaccine, i.e. for ages 6 and above.
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