OptumServe testing sites closing down
Multiple Humboldt County COVID-19 OptumServe testing sites closed last week and the one in Eureka will shutter by the end of February, the county’s Department of Health and Human Services said in a news release this week.
“OptumServe’s COVID-19 testing sites in McKinleyville, Trinidad and Arcata officially closed at the end of last week,” a release from the county stated. “The Eureka site is expected to close sometime before the end of February, although the specific date has not yet been determined by the state. The closing comes as California’s COVID-19 State of Emergency winds down with an official end date of Feb. 28.”
OptumServe offers rapid antigen and PCR testing services at the Wharfinger Building in Eureka five days a week. Walkins will receive only rapid antigen testing unless the attendee specifically states they require a PCR test, according to the release. Appointments for antigen testing can be made by calling 888-634-1123. Wharfinger testing runs Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. and is closed from 11 a.m. to noon and 4 to 5 p.m.
The move locally is part of a statewide trend. Forty-four OptumServe sites were shuttered last week, and 48 mobile “mini-buses” will begin closing in two weeks, according to the California Department of Public Health. OptumServe, a health care operations company, ran 123 testing and treatment sites along with four vaccination clinics through state contracts.
The closures came just a week after Gov. Gavin Newsom released his January budget proposal that moved $614 million in unspent COVID-19 response funds to the state’s general fund and drastically reduced the amount of pandemic money for the upcoming year.
This week, the Humboldt County Department of Health and Human Services announced one of the lowest weekly totals of new cases on Wednesday with 42 new confirmed and probable cases over the past seven days. There were also three new local hospitalizations.
As of Jan. 24, there have been 23,235 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Humboldt County and an additional 6,007 cases that are probable.