Ocean County increasing Covid-19 testing hours at OCC

A week and a half after announcing they are increasing testing days, comes word from the Ocean County Health Department that they are now also increasing the hours per day.

Every weekday this month testing, by appointment, will be done from 9:00 am until 3:00 pm and from 9:00 am until 12:00 pm on Saturdays.

“The increase in hours will allow us to increase the number of tests conducted to more than 300 per day,” Ocean County Freeholder Gerry Little, liaison to the Ocean County Health Department said in a statement Monday. “Since the opening of the test site in March, we have closely monitored the needs and consistently adjusted the hours of testing at the college to accommodate our residents.”

The drive-thru location at OCC provides tests for both symptomatic and asymptomatic County residents.

To schedule an appointment for a test, if you're an Ocean County resident only, you can visit the Ocean County Health Department website at www.ochd.org or call the Health Department with any questions at 732-341-9700, extension 7411.

Proof of residency will be required and all emergency responders can also access testing at the site.

“As people see the number of positive cases increase, more want to be tested,” Ocean County Public Health Coordinator Dan Regenye said in a statement. “Testing will show if you have the virus even if you are asymptomatic. This can help reduce the spread of the virus so long as people quarantine. We have also consistently encouraged our residents to get tested. We believe the longer hours will address the demand.”

As of November 25, 13,004 coronavirus tests have been performed at the college testing site.

“This site has been the result of a successful partnership with the college, our area hospitals, Sheriff Michael Mastronardy and the Ocean County Office of Emergency Management, the Ocean County Health Department and a host of other collaborators who have come together to make this work for our citizens,” Ocean County Freeholder Director Joe Vicari said. “It’s important to be flexible at the site so we can offer more tests when needed.”

Regenye said there are other locations and testing sites for asymptomatic people that have opened throughout the state with some located in Ocean County.

Two websites providing this information are: https://covid19.nj.gov/pages/testing and https://covid19.nj.gov/pages/testing#test-sites.

Once the test has been performed, it’s anticipated to take about three to five days for results to be returned.

“All the results will be available on the BioReference Laboratories Patient Portal: Bioreference.com/patients/ and through the Ocean County Health Department residents will be notified whether they test positive or negative,” Regenye said.

Regenye said the most common symptoms of COVID 19 are fever, fatigue, a dry cough and shortness of breath.

Ocean County officials are urging everyone to take the steps necessary to curtail the virus including wearing a mask, social distancing, frequent handwashing and staying home when sick.

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