ADDITIONAL SCHOOL COVID-19 TESTING DATE AND MASK GIVEAWAY ANNOUNCED

New City, NY, - The Rockland County Department of Health is continuing to partner with Good Samaritan Hospital to provide an additional testing date for school districts within Rockland's Yellow Zone. Schools within the Yellow Zone are required to test 20% of students, faculty, and staff over the two-week period immediately following the announcement of a Yellow Zone designation in order to stay open for in-person instruction.

If the results of the 20% testing show the positivity rate of those tested is lower than the yellow zone's current 7-day positivity rate, testing at that school will no longer be required to continue in-person instruction. This indicates that in-person instruction is not a significant driver of local viral spread. The current positivity rate for Rockland County can be found at https://forward.ny.gov/percentage-positive-results-county-dashboard.

However, if the results of the two-week testing reveal that the positivity rate among in-person students, staff, and faculty is higher than the Yellow Zone's current 7-day positivity rate, the school will be required to continue to test 20% of the in-person population over a two-week period.

Testing along with a cloth face mask giveaway will be on Monday, December 14, from 11:00 am – 2:00 pm at the Palisades Center Mall Garage Entrance West (ramp entrance next to Best Buy). This is a drive-up site or walk-up for those arriving by bus (please follow signs). This testing site is open to any student, faculty, or staff member from any of the schools within Rockland's Yellow Zone.

This testing is NOT for people having symptoms of COVID-19. These testing sites are ONLY for members of the school communities affected by the Governor's Yellow Zone restrictions.

Please complete the registration form before arriving at one of the testing sites. A parent or guardian will need to sign the consent (on the bottom of the page) for testing a minor. Good Samaritan Hospital will notify you of the test results.

"The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has solidified the importance of our partnership with local and state government as well as our community. We have relied on one another and grown stronger together. This week, Good Samaritan Hospital is proud to continue to work collaboratively with the school districts and government to provide testing for school-age children within Rockland's yellow zones. We are undertaking this project as a community benefit that is part of the hospital's long-standing commitment to improving the health of the communities we serve," said Mary P. Leahy, MD, MHA, CEO of Bon Secours Charity Health System.

"To further decrease the burden of testing on our school districts, we are able to offer one additional testing date in partnership with Good Samaritan Hospital. We want students to be able to attend in-person classes if possible. However, because we cannot ensure the regular continuation of these testing services, we advise all of our local districts to prepare to meet the Governor's testing requirements on their own," said Commissioner of Health Dr. Patricia Schnabel Ruppert.