Washoe County Commission Chair, Reno Mayor, and Sparks Mayor Provide Guidelines on Testing for Businesses in Phase Two of Nevada’s Reopening
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Reno, Nev. March 27, 2020. With Governor Sisolak’s announcement of the May 29 beginning of Phase Two of Nevada’s reopening plan, along with Gaming and Resorts to reopen on June 4, Washoe County Commission Chairman Bob Lucey, Reno Mayor Hillary Schieve and Sparks Mayor Ron Smith are working together to ensure Northern Nevada businesses understand the new phase’s parameters with regards to testing.
“We encourage employers to offer testing to anyone who wants it,” said Chairman Lucey. “Though testing is not mandatory, the more we test, the more we can ensure our employees feel safe coming to work, and our visitors know their health and safety is our top priority.”
Lucey noted that with the resumption of gaming and resort operations beginning on June 4, other businesses and vendors to the industry will naturally see increased activity, which enhances the need for broad testing capability. Lucey, Schieve, and Smith all agree that any business that wishes to provide testing should use any option that is approved under the state’s guidelines, including Renown, LabCorp and Quest, and any private testing options meeting the state’s standards.
“We need to utilize every qualified testing option we have available to ensure we are meeting the community’s needs,” said Mayor Schieve. “It’s essential that we are able to provide rapid testing results to ensure we mitigate the spread of the virus as effectively as possible.”
“We support the continued community-based testing to help our businesses return to operation safely in Phase 2, not only for the employees of our region but our visitors as well” said Mayor Smith. “We need to stay vigilant to protect our businesses and stay safe to stay open.”
In accordance with the State of Nevada’s request for a community-wide testing event, the Washoe County drive-through test site will test residents of Washoe County regardless of symptoms who schedule an appointment during the week of June 1, with 900 daily tests available for anyone in the region.
Having symptoms will not be required to get tested; however, registration for this event is required. Asymptomatic people can register for testing starting May 29.
To get tested, whether you have symptoms or not, simply fill out a risk assessment form (click here for Spanish form) or call 775-328-2427 to get scheduled. The appointments for the asymptomatic testing event will be available from 8 a.m. to noon.
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