Clark County’s free COVID-19 testing site administered 4,648 tests in its first month of operation, according to a media release from Clark County Public Health.
The site, located in the Tower Mall parking lot at 5403 E. Mill Plain Blvd. in Vancouver, opened on Jan. 12. It was established as the region’s first public no-barrier coronavirus testing location — while people are encouraged to bring their photo ID, it’s not required to take a test.
“The Tower Mall site has removed barriers for COVID-19 testing in our community by offering free testing for everyone without requiring a visit with a health care provider,” Public Health Director Dr. Alan Melnick said in the media release.
During the first month, 11.5 percent of people tested at the Tower Mall site received positive test results, higher than the most recent countywide positivity rate of 8 percent. That’s to be expected, according to Public Health, because people who got tested at the site likely did so because they were showing symptoms.
