PCR tests now being offered at Family Arena
January 5, 2022
As COVID-19 cases in the St. Louis area continue to rise, polymerase chain reaction, or PCR, tests are now being made available at the St. Charles Family Arena, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Family Arena will be open for these tests from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. every day until Thursday, Jan. 13. Those who would like to be tested will have to schedule an appointment, which can be done on the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services website.
In an attempt to better manage traffic, 35 cars will be booked for each half-hour slot.
The Bridgeton-based company AIM Laboratories is offering the self-administered tests at the arena. There had already been around 1,500 to 1,600 people who had signed up to get tested there on Monday, according to the Post-Dispatch.
This comes after a recent surge in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations in the St. Louis area. St. Louis County officials reported on Monday that there had been a record for new daily infections, while local hospitals reported a record number of hospitalizations, according to the Post-Dispatch.
The rolling seven-day average of new COVID-19 cases came in at 1,696, the most yet. In terms of hospitalizations, BJC HealthCare, SSM Health, Mercy and St. Luke’s reported a total of 964 patients with COVID-19, according to the Post-Dispatch. This breaks a record of 962 patients that was set on Dec. 1, 2020.