The Georgia Department of Public Health’s Northwest Health District plans to end its nearly yearlong operation of free COVID-19 testing sites effective Thursday, February 25th with the closing of that day’s site in Walker County, according to a media release from the district.
Dr. Gary Voccio, the health director for the 10-county health district, assserts, “Over the last two months, we’ve been shifting more and more of our limited public health resources to providing vaccinations and, in anticipation of an increasing vaccine supply, believe now is time to discontinue COVID testing and focus on immunization. There are now other resources in our Northwest Georgia communities for these tests.”
The health district’s decision to cease their free testing should not be taken as an indicator that the virus is no longer a problem in Northwest Georgia. Says Dr. Voccio, “We’re not out of the woods yet.”