More than 12,000 Free Rapid COVID Tests Available at Drive-Up Testing Site at UW-Green Bay, beginning Monday, Nov. 9
GREEN BAY, Wis.—The University of Wisconsin-Green Bay will host one of the state’s COVID-19 “surge-testing sites”—a partnership between the UW System’s 13 Universities and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services as announced today (Nov. 4) by UW System President Tommy Thompson. See the UW System news release.
It is the first time a federal surge testing operation will utilize Abbott BinaxNOW rapid point-of-care tests that provide a result “while-you-wait,” within 15 minutes. PCR Tests distributed by the federal government and allocated by the state Department of Health Services will be used as a confirmatory test in line with Department of Health Services existing protocol.
The drive-up testing area will be held near UW-Green Bay’s Weidner Center for the Performing Arts, which allows easy access and traffic flow from Nicolet Drive. Campuses are currently establishing testing sites with medical support provided by eTrueNorth under contract with the federal government.
Testing will be available to anyone age 5-and-older at no cost, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. by appointment at DoINeedACovid19Test.com. Individuals do not have to be experiencing symptoms nor have close contact of someone with COVID-19 to get a test, nor do they need to live in Green Bay.
“Our universities are perfectly positioned to help Wisconsin combat the spread of COVID-19,” Thompson said in a statement, today. “This is the Wisconsin Idea in action, and a recognition of our existing work to keep our students, faculty, and staff as safe as possible during the pandemic.”
The state Department of Health Services will be supplying an additional 30,000 PCR tests as part of the effort. Individuals who test negative using the BinaxNOW test but also are experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 or who test positive but do not have symptoms are urged to get a confirmatory PCR test at the testing site.
UW-Green Bay Chancellor Mike Alexander said the campus is prepared to do what it takes to help combat the spread of COVID-19 in Northeast Wisconsin.
“It is our responsibility to do what we can to help stop the spread,” he said. “We have been granted more than 12,000 tests to use on our campus to help slow the spread of the pandemic. We urge everyone, especially those 30-years-and-younger who are less likely to be symptomatic but still carry and unknowingly spread the virus, to take advantage of this quick and easy testing opportunity.”
Individuals who want to be tested can register online, proceed to the testing site, administer the test themselves under supervision, and label it for processing. All participants must register for a free test at DoINeedACOVID19Test.com. Participants will also retrieve results by logging into this portal after receiving an email that results are ready.
Alexander is also asking the community to help spread the word about this new testing program.
“It’s free, it’s fast and it will help our community to get the spread under control,” he shared. “UW-Green Bay wants to be a part of the solution in this community and that’s why we’re working so hard to get the word out. Please tell your family, friends and neighbors to get a test.”
Students who live on the Green Bay Campus will not have their testing procedures or test site altered. They will be expected to continue their weekly mandatory surveillance testing at the Kress Events Center Turf Gym. All other UW-Green Bay students have the option of using either testing option to monitor COVID-19.
About the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay
The University of Wisconsin-Green Bay is a comprehensive public institution offering undergraduate, graduate and doctoral programs to more than 8,700 students with campus locations in Green Bay, Marinette, Manitowoc and Sheboygan. Established in 1965 on the border of Green Bay, the University and its campuses are centers of cultural enrichment, innovation and learning. The Green Bay campus is home to one of the Midwest’s most prolific performing arts centers, a nationally recognized 4,000-seat student recreation center, D-I athletics, an award-winning nine-hole golf course and a five-mile recreational trail and arboretum, which is free and open to the public. This four-campus University transforms lives and communities through student-focused teaching and research, innovative learning opportunities, powerful connections and a problem-solving approach to education. UW-Green Bay’s main campus is centrally located, close to both the Door County resort area and the dynamic economies of Northeast Wisconsin, the Fox Valley region and the I-43 corridor. UW-Green Bay offers in-demand programs in science, engineering and technology; business; health, education and social welfare; and arts, humanities and social sciences. For more information, visit www.uwgb.edu.
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