Additional home testing kits available

Friday, January 21, 2022

During his Wednesday covid-19 report, Blytheville Mayor James Sanders announced that additional at-home testing kits are available at the city hall.

The first delivery of around 180 antigen rapid tests were received last Friday and were all distributed the same day.

“That very first day, I imagine they really wanted to determine whether or not the public would receive them,” Sanders said. “It was received very well and we contacted [the Arkansas Department of Health] to let them know how fast we ran out.”

When doing so, Sanders was informed that additional kits were already on the way. He added that both health departments in Blytheville and Osceola, as well as the Mississippi County Library System, have test kits available as well. As long as supplies last with the Arkansas Department of Health, cities across the state will continue receiving kits.

Two tests are presented in every box and each location will provide as many tests needed for each household.

An additional route to receiving at-home tests has been created federally as well. Citizens can visit covidtests.org to have four tests shipped directly to their homes.

The need for testing has increased across the country as numbers have continued to surge. As of Wednesday, the state of Arkansas held 88,938 active cases, with 1,275 active cases in Mississippi County.

Mississippi County Health Officer Dr. Valencia Andrews-Pirtle noted a change that health providers have made to help combat the positive cases. Remdesivir, a treatment for covid, was previously only used as an in-patient therapy for covid. Now, the drug can be used as a three-day infusion for out-patient care as well.

However, to best prevent the need for this treatment, Pirtle urged the community to recommit to wearing masks as often as possible.

“We have to all mask up,” Pirtle said. “I believe there’s no reason why anybody should be walking around without a mask on. Omicron is very transmisible. We don’t want to let any other variants happen, so let’s not give it a chance.”

Pirtle has also reiterated the importance of wearing high-filtering masks that provide the best protection. In last week’s report, she prompted the public to use N95 and KN95 masks rather than cloth masks.

While addressing the significance of being vaccinated against covid, Pirtle also mentioned the importance of being vaccinated against the flu as well.

“I’ve seen some people who are sicker and feel worse with the flu, than they have with the most recent strain of covid,” Pirtle said. “Those who haven’t been vaccinated for the flu have been in really bad shape. Get your vaccination for the flu too.”