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WGLT's reporting on the coronavirus pandemic, which began in McLean County in March 2020.

McLean County Will Keep COVID-19 Testing Site

Inside Interstate Center
Ryan Denham
/
WGLT
McLean County Health Department Administrator Jessica McKnight said Thursday the county will keep its COVID-19 testing site beyond Friday.

UPDATED 8:10 p.m. | McLean County Health Department administrator Jessica McKnight told the County Board of Health on Thursday the county will keep its COVID-19 drive-thru testing site beyond its scheduled closure on Friday.
Illinois Emergency Management Agency Director Alicia Tate-Nadeau said Thursday the testing site will remain at the Interstate Center in west Bloomington, but will be a “smaller footprint."

“That really is the only thing that’s different, but as far as throughput and capability, that will be retained at Bloomington also,” Tate-Nadeau said.

Reditus, a private testing lab in Pekin, will administer the tests, according to a news release from state Rep. Dan Brady, R-Bloomington. 

"We will miss our wonderful Illinois National Guard members when they move on tomorrow, but thankfully, local testing will continue uninterrupted," Brady said in a statement. 

The site will continue to test up to 250 people per day.

Last week, the state announced the testing site was moving to Peoria, citing a lack of use. The state later extended the Bloomington testing site for another week.

Tate-Nadeau said the Bloomington site will remain open “until there is no longer a need,” adding “there’s been limited use of that facility, so we’ll just look and see what the throughput is there."

The testing site was largely underutilized until April 29, when the state loosened restrictions to allow some asymptomatic people to be tested. The site has been averaging nearly 200 tests per day since the state announced it was closing the site.

The Board of Health is meeting Thursday night to discuss McLean County’s proposal to reopen its economy ahead of Gov. JB Pritzker’s Restore Illinois plan.

The County Board will vote on that proposal duringa special meeting May 28.

WGLT will update this story.

We’re living in unprecedented times when information changes by the minute. WGLT will continue to be here for you, keeping you up-to-date with the live, local and trusted news you need. Help ensure WGLT can continue with its in-depth and comprehensive COVID-19 coverage as the situation evolves by making a contribution.

Eric Stock is the News Director at WGLT. You can contact Eric at ejstoc1@ilstu.edu.
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