BY ANDY GARDNER

North Country This Week

CANTON -- St. Lawrence County legislators discussed if it would be possible to hold a mass COVID-19 testing event in the county.

The discussion took place during the Dec. 7 full Board of Legislators meeting, which was streamed live online.

Legislator Margaret Haggard, D-Potsdam, brought up the idea and several board members from both sides of the aisle agreed it's worth looking into.

"I think the timing is very good, if it was something we could put together at somewhat of a rapid pace, because of the uptick," said Legislator Tony Arquiett, D-Helena. Earlier in the meeting, Public Health Director Dr. Dana McGuire said COVID-19 in the county has quadrupled since early November, and gone up 140% in just the week prior to her making the comment at the Dec. 7 meeting.

Legislature Chairman Joe Lightfoot, R-Ogdensburg, said he thinks they need to look at coordinating with state health authorities, adding "I do think it's a great idea."

Legislator Dave Forsythe, R-Lisbon, said he supports the idea but thinks they should make sure the Public Health Department would be able to handle what could be an even bigger surge in new cases because of a mass testing event.

"The only concern I would have is the Public Health Department is stressed at the moment. I'd want to ask Dana if she can handle it.They have a lot of eggs in their basket right now," he said.

Dr. McGuire said it would require the state and local health authorities pooling their resources. She said the county has a shortage of nurses to collect samples to be tested for the coronavirus, but coordinating with local hospital systems could alleviate that.

"We've been in contact with the state ... you have to organize it with the state. They provide based on resources they can provide, and they also ask you what resources you can provide," she told the legislature.

Haggard later added that she thinks they should ensure the tests could be returned quickly, or else "I think it loses its effectiveness."

Legislator Rita Curran, R-Massena replied and said she was tested for COVID-19 by St. Lawrence Health System on the previous Friday, Dec. 4, and got her results back two days later on Sunday, Dec. 6. 

Dr. Andrew Williams, president of the St. Lawrence County Board of Health, said he also supports the idea.

"In principle, providing greater access to testing throughout the community remains a goal. I think one or two days with expanded access to testing is a reasonable idea," he said. 

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