A new drive-through coronavirus test site opened Jan. 6 at East Hampton Town Hall to meet growing demand amid a surge in Covid-19 cases nationwide, including on the East End — and residents turned out in force.
The website for residents to make an appointment, testbeforeyougo.com, proved spotty on the first day, when 125 people showed up to get tested, town officials said, noting that opening a Montauk location is under consideration.
“There’s quite a bit of demand townwide,” East Hampton Town Supervisor Peter Van Scoyoc told the Jan. 7 board meeting. “The number of cases in the town are much higher than they were during the initial outbreak.”
Covid-19 cases have tripled since October to nearly 900 as of last week, the supervisor said. The number of cases across Suffolk County recently doubled in a two-month period to more than 100,000.
COVID-19 PCR (RNA) nasal swab testing, rapid antigen testing for active viral infection diagnosis, and antibody blood testing to determine if someone has had a previous case of the virus will be available at East Hampton Town Hall from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., seven days per week.
The cost will be $179 for the PCR nasal swab test, $99 for the rapid antigen test and $59 for the antibody test, all of which is covered by insurance. A limited number of free tests will be made available to those in financial need, the town said.
The testing will be conducted by Collection Sites, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of QuestCap Inc.
