Raiders use trailer for virus testing
A temporary facility has been set up on site at the Raiders’ practice facility in Henderson to conduct COVID-19 testing.
A 64-by-12-foot trailer has been placed in the parking lot near the south-facing portion of the Raiders’ facility, where daily testing will occur throughout the 2020 NFL season for players, coaches and staff members, according to plans submitted to Henderson officials.
The testing will be conducted by Bioreference Labs, which was contracted to handle virus testing for all NFL teams.
The trailer has five testing bays, office space and a restroom and will be staffed by 10 employees. enerator and is required to be serviced daily.
Plans call for players to be tested daily for the first two weeks of training camp that begins Tuesday. Following the first two weeks, if the positivity rate for players is below 5 percent, then testing would occur every other day. Everyday testing could return if the positivity rate balloons above 5 percent.
All tier one employees (players and personnel that require direct access to players) and tier two employees (essential personnel that could be in close proximity to tier one individuals) of the Raiders will be tested under the same protocols.
Representatives from the Raiders did not immediately respond to comment on the testing process, while a representative from Bioreference declined to comment, directing any questions to the team.
The NFL Players Association has received the Raiders’ Infectious Disease Emergency Response plan and is reviewing it, according to the group’s website.
As of Wednesday, the NFLPA has plans for all 32 teams, approving eight, with the remaining 24 under review.
The NFLPA lists the Las Vegas metropolitan area as having the sixth-highest concentration of COVID-19 cases among NFL markets, based on data from Johns Hopkins University. The data looked at a 14-day average of daily cases per 100,000 residents.
Contact Mick Akers at makers@ reviewjournal.com or 702-3872920. Follow @mickakers on Twitter.