Post by Nadica (She/Her) on Aug 20, 2024 1:39:30 GMT
Marblehead Offers Free COVID Tests Amid Summer Virus Surge - Published Aug 19, 2024
Residents can get their rapid, at-home test kids at the Mary Alley Building.
MARBLEHEAD, MA — Marblehead residents are being offered free, at-home COVID-19 tests as the region deals with a surge in cases late this summer.
The free tests are available to all residents at the Mary Alley Building while supplies last.
Much of the country, including Massachusetts, is experiencing a summer bump in COVID-19 cases, according to recent wastewater surveillance data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
While 27 states are reporting "very high" levels, Massachusetts was one of 17 states reporting "high" levels of wastewater viral activity as of Aug. 9.
With the current spike in COVID infections, "this is probably going to end up becoming the largest summer wave we’ve had," Dr. Ashish Jha, dean of the Brown University School of Public Health and former White House COVID-29 response coordinator, told NBC News.
The CDC recommends that everyone over 6 months get updated COVID-19 vaccines when they become available this fall, regardless of whether the person has been previously vaccinated. The Food and Drug Administration recommends that pharmaceutical companies formulate vaccines to protect against the KP.2 strain, known as FLiRT variant, which is responsible for about 6 percent of positive COVID cases nationwide as of last week.
Residents can get their rapid, at-home test kids at the Mary Alley Building.
MARBLEHEAD, MA — Marblehead residents are being offered free, at-home COVID-19 tests as the region deals with a surge in cases late this summer.
The free tests are available to all residents at the Mary Alley Building while supplies last.
Much of the country, including Massachusetts, is experiencing a summer bump in COVID-19 cases, according to recent wastewater surveillance data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
While 27 states are reporting "very high" levels, Massachusetts was one of 17 states reporting "high" levels of wastewater viral activity as of Aug. 9.
With the current spike in COVID infections, "this is probably going to end up becoming the largest summer wave we’ve had," Dr. Ashish Jha, dean of the Brown University School of Public Health and former White House COVID-29 response coordinator, told NBC News.
The CDC recommends that everyone over 6 months get updated COVID-19 vaccines when they become available this fall, regardless of whether the person has been previously vaccinated. The Food and Drug Administration recommends that pharmaceutical companies formulate vaccines to protect against the KP.2 strain, known as FLiRT variant, which is responsible for about 6 percent of positive COVID cases nationwide as of last week.