(Oklahoma City) – The Oklahoma City-County Health Department and Tulsa Health Department announced today residents can receive same or next day appointments for COVID-19 tests at the health department testing operations in Oklahoma City and Tulsa.
“Across the country, demand for COVID-19 testing has slowed in the past couple of weeks,” said LT Knighten, public information officer for OCCHD. “We want to remind individuals the tests provided by OCCHD are free and result turnaround time is approximately 24-48 hours currently,” Knighten added.
Results for Tulsa Health Department testing operations are received within three business days, depending on lab capacity. THD utilizes a combination of public and private labs to test specimens.
Both health departments stress testing as critical to identifying the impact of the virus on their communities.
“We encourage individuals who are experiencing symptoms, or who think they’ve been in contact with a confirmed positive case to be tested,” said Knighten. “Adequate testing ensures we’re able to effectively trace cases and quarantine impacted individuals before they spread the virus,” she added.
The CDC states the following individuals should get tested for COVID-19:
People who have symptoms of COVID-19
People who have had close contact (within 6 feet of an infected person for at least 15 minutes) with someone with confirmed COVID-19
People who have been asked or referred to get testing by their healthcare provider, local or state health department.
Across the state, an average of 1,400 individuals receive their COVID-19 test from a local county health department each day.
“The Tulsa Health Department offers specimen collection for COVID-19 testing in north and south Tulsa to provide convenient access for community residents. There is no cost for testing, and it’s easy to quickly make an appointment,” said Leanne Stephens, public information officer for THD.
Individuals needing a test in Oklahoma County can schedule a test through OCCHD’s Crush the Curve website beginning Sept. 1 at testokc.com.
In Tulsa County, call 918-582-9355. The Tulsa Health Department is also launching a digital platform for test scheduling, results and contact tracing soon.
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