FEMA Coronavirus Drive-Through Testing Opens In NJ

NEW JERSEY — New Jersey residents seeking testing for the new coronavirus will have to be patient for a bit a longer as state and federal agencies work to set up drive-through testing sites.

During Gov. Phil Murphy's news conference Monday, New Jersey State Police said they are opening two FEMA assistance centers – otherwise known as "pods" – where people can be tested.

One, at Bergen Community College in Paramus, opened at 8 a.m. on Friday. The other will be at the PNC Bank Arts Center, just off the Garden State Parkway in Holmdel.

Those facilities could provide as many as 5,000 tests, and perhaps hundreds a day, and could be open within a matter of days, Murphy said.

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The announcement of plans for the two testing centers comes as the state announced another 80 people have tested positive for the COVID-19 virus in New Jersey, raising the total number of positive tests to 178 across New Jersey. Two people in New Jersey have died from the illness.

COVID-19 is caused by a member of the coronavirus family that's a close cousin to the SARS and MERS viruses that have caused outbreaks in the past. Read more: NJ Coronavirus Updates: Here's What You Need To Know

In Ocean County, health department officials have been fielding a multitude of calls from residents asking where they can go to get tested for the coronavirus.

Right now in the county, though private labs and health care facilities are conducting the tests, availability is still limited to testing ordered by health care providers, said Brian Lippai, public information officer for the Oceaan County Health Department.

"We are getting those same questions, 'Can we call a lab?' " Lippai said. "Right now, everything is still going through your health care provider."

The county health department is working with its local facilities to set up a drive-through testing facility in Ocean County, but Lippai did not have an estimate of when that might happen.

Megan Santiago, health educator at the Cape May County Health Department, said the situation is similar, with testing only being conducted on the orders of health care providers, and only available in the emergency room of Cape May Medical Center.

"That could change," Santiago said. "Doctors' offices could start having testing. That’s ongoing. Right now, the only individuals that are being tested are being tested are who has symptoms such as a fever of 100.4 or higher. They also had to have had come in contact with someone who is positive for the coronavirus, or they also have to have severe respiratory distress to the point that they have to be admitted to the hospital."

"Anyone who can maintain their symptoms at home and monitor them, we are asking them to stay home and do that, unless they seek medical advice," Santiago said. "We are asking everyone to call the medical facility ahead. We do not have it at the county health department, and they can call their local health providers to ask for more guidance.”

Lippai said the Ocean County Health Department will continue to issue alerts as information changes and becomes available.

With reporting by Tom Davis and Josh Bakan, Patch staff

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