HOLIDAY, Fla. – Coronavirus testing sites are getting busier in Pasco County.
What You Need To Know
- Pasco residents struggling to get tested
- Testing sites seeing long lines of people, having to close early
- It took our reporter Tim Wronka three tries to get tested this week
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At the state testing site at the Home Depot on US 19 in Holiday, folks are now waiting for hours in the hot sun.
“Hot. Very hot,” said Pasco County resident Neil Williams.
Williams made two attempts at the site this week after coming into contact with someone with COVID-19 at work.
“I came on Tuesday but it was too backed up. I came back in the morning and it was still backed up, even at 9:00,” Williams said.
Home Depot employees even brought water and umbrellas to folks waiting in the heat on Wednesday.
“It’s long, it’s hot, but what are you going to do? You have to find out,” said Clearwater resident Neil Williams, who also had to make two attempts at the site before getting tested.
The state site is getting busier by the day as cases have spiked in Florida. Pasco County has more than 1,000 cases as of Wednesday.
Spectrum Bay News 9 Reporter Tim Wronka was turned away twice at the Home Depot site this week, with the testing site cutting people off early due to high demand.
He did get tested at the BayCare drive-thru set up at Gulf High School in New Port Richey. However, even arriving at 7:45 a.m., 15 minutes before it opened, he waited more than an hour with dozens of cars ahead.
About an hour later, I got my test. It went well but it’s been a journey to get one for many people these last few days. Here’s my experience this week: @BN9 pic.twitter.com/nYY5gIgfeq
— Tim Wronka (@TimWronka) June 24, 2020
CVS has testing locations in nearby Pinellas County but many people are reporting difficulty in getting an appointment set up.
According to the Florida Department of Health in Pasco, in the past week, the Home Depot COVID-19 testing site tested approximately 1,536 people and the Gulf High School testing site tested approximately 1,626 people. At this time, they are looking into options for additional testing sites in Pasco County.
The state testing site is free and open from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. daily at the Home Depot, located at 1315 US 19 in Holiday.
The BayCare drive-thru site is open from 8 -11 a.m. weekdays at Gulf High, located at 5355 School Rd. in New Port Richey. It’s free with insurance but $85 without, according to BayCare’s website. Payment is not due at the site.
