In a special meeting at 5 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 13, the Chaffee Board of County Commissioners voted to approve two contracts for testing equipment and a mobile testing unit that will provide more local health care protections as the coronavirus pandemic known as COVID-19 continues. Delivery is expected around mid-September.
The costs; a roughly $184,500 lease contract for five testing machines, and between $90,000 and $100,000 for the mobile trailer, are covered by the CARES Act funding the county has received from the federal government, as part of the government’s response to the impact of the pandemic.
This is a picture of CDC’s laboratory test kit for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). CDC is shipping the test kits to laboratories CDC has designated as qualified, including U.S. state and local public health laboratories, Department of Defense (DOD) laboratories and select international laboratories. (Photo courtesy of CDC)
The equipment; a mobile testing unit equipped with five testing machines and rapid testing supplies from Abbott Diagnostics (Abbott Rapid tests), which will allow rapid test capability within the county. The topic had been tabled from the BoCC Tuesday, Aug. 11 meeting to clarify questions about the contract options.
“This is really our insurance plan, we don’t know what lies ahead,” said Chaffee County Director of Public Health Andrea Carlstrom.
Carlstrom stresses that the public should know that “the new equipment will allow us to test not just for COVID-19, but it will allow us to test for flu and strep, right here in the county. Flu and strep are much less expensive tests than the COVID test, so we can rule them out first, then do the COVID test if needed.”
The county had the option of buying or leasing the five testing machines, and commissioners decided to lease them.
As a county of around 20,000, five testing machines were recommended by Abbott. Each can process a test in around 15 minutes, making the total testing time around 45 minutes per test instead of the days it has taken to send the tests out of the county to a lab some two and a half hours away. In some cases, tests have had to be sent out of the state for processing.
“Rapid testing — if someone tests positive — we know what to do right away,” said Carlstrom, who recommended leasing the testing units. She indicated that the speed with which results can be obtained once the testing machines are in place is important. “It means that if there is a positive case, then families, schools, and workplaces can be notified immediately and isolated, and contact tracing can begin days sooner than is possible now. This is a slam dunk as far as public health is concerned.”
The mobile trailer will be purchased, with the plan that it can be moved around the county to schools, to county facilities, and to communities on a need-based schedule. Based on the emergency declaration for emergency procurement, it is also covered by CARES Act funding.
“It feels like Christmas, but a bad crummy Christmas,” said Carlstrom ruefully, after commissioners had voted unanimously to approve the contracts.” But I have to say this is taking the most thoughtful approach to what lies ahead.”
Featured image: Chaffee Dept. of Public Health has ordered a mobile trailer for rapid testing purposes. It will be equipped with five testing machines that can test for COVID-19, flu and strep. Courtesy photo.
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