Abbeville Area Medical Center will be ending free COVID-19 testing at its weekly Mobile Testing Clinic effective Wednesday, March 30th. The hospital was recently notified that DHEC would no longer partner with community agencies to offer free lab support for testing. The drive through service will continue to provide complimentary COVID-19 home test kits on Wednesdays from 8:00am – 12:00pm. Home test kits are also available at Due West Family Medicine and the Abbeville Area Healthcare Center.
The need for mobile testing has declined since the latest Omicron surge with only five to six people currently utilizing the clinic on most days. COVID-19 testing continues to be available at the Abbeville Area Healthcare Center by appointment only by calling 366-9681.
“AAMC has had the privilege of serving our community during the COVID-19 pandemic by providing drive thru ‘mobile’ testing clinics,” stated Amanda Morgan, AAMC’s Community Health, Outreach and Wellness Director. “Since 2020 this community service has kept more than 14,000 sick people out of our Emergency Department and our physician clinics which has reduced overall exposures.”
The state did not require hospitals to offer mobile testing, but AAMC and medical staff leadership was committed to doing what was best for the community. This group realized early on that the hospital and its clinics were not equipped to accommodate the large numbers of people who needed testing and that mobile testing was the only option to keep residents working and children in school. AAMC’s mobile testing clinics remained a constant force since the start of the pandemic in June 2020, seeing record numbers in January 2022 at the height of the Omicron variant.
“The mobile testing staff are among some of the best people I have ever worked with,” stated Morgan. “I commend the medical staff and hospital leadership for the support they provided to make this happen.”
