Free drive-up COVID-19 testing coming to Catoosa

The Georgia Department of Public Health has contracted with MAKO Medical to provide free COVID-19 testing, including Catoosa County.

The testing will be at convenient locations around the state. In Northwest Georgia, MAKO Medical will provide free drive-up COVID-19 testing in Bartow County on Tuesdays and Thursdays beginning Thursday, Aug. 26, and in Catoosa County on Mondays and Wednesdays beginning Wednesday, Aug. 25.

There are no eligibility requirements for free testing at either site other than having a Georgia address and registering online at https://mako. exchange/splash/GAmakotesting/. For those without internet access, assistance with registration by telephone is available at 919-351-6256.

MAKO Medical will provide test results within two to three days by either signing up for their portal at www. mako.luminatehealth.com or by opting during the registration process for notification via text message.

Test sites and dates are:

♦Bartow County (beginning Thursday, Aug. 26) on Tuesdays and Thursdays weekly from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the LakePointe Sports Complex, 261 Stars Way, Emerson.

♦Catoosa County (beginning Wednesday, Aug. 25) on Mondays and Wednesdays weekly from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. at The Colonnade, 264 Catoosa Circle, Ringgold.

The PCR testing is done by nasal swab to determine the presence of the virus that causes COVID-19. Anyone who has COVID-19 type symptoms or has been in close contact recently with a person infected with the virus needs to be tested for COVID-19, even if they are fully vaccinated.

More information about MAKO Medical’s free COVID-19 testing is available at https:// mako.exchange/splash/GAmakotesting/.