Department of Health and Senior Services to offer free COVID-19 testing at MSSU football field

(From the Joplin Health Department)

The City of Joplin and Jasper County Health Departments announce a community COVID-19 testing site will be offered on Friday, October 16 at Missouri Southern State University. This community testing event is for Missouri residents and offered through the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services and their partners including the Missouri National Guard, local health departments, and health care providers in the Joplin area.

Testing will be done from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Friday, October 16 at the football stadium parking lot, located directly south of the stadium on Duquesne Road.

Testing is free for Missouri residents, but individuals must register at www.health.mo.gov/communitytest. Those who need assistance registering may contact our Missouri COVID-19 Hotline (toll-free) at 877-435-8411. This hotline number has access to language services when needed.

The test is a PCR test done by a nasal anterior nares swab to determine if there is an active infection with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. This is not an antigen or antibody test.

While COVID-19 is spread from person to person, more than 80% of the patients who develop it will only become mildly ill. The concern is for patients with underlying medical conditions and the elderly, who are more likely to need hospital-level supportive care.

People with COVID-19 have had a wide range of symptoms reported – ranging from mild symptoms to severe illness. Symptoms may appear 2-14 days after exposure to the virus. People with these symptoms may have COVID-19:
Fever or chills
Cough
Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
Fatigue
Muscle or body aches
Headache
New loss of taste or smell
Sore throat
Congestion or runny nose
Nausea or vomiting
Diarrhea

This list, taken from the Centers for Disease Control website, does not include all possible symptoms. CDC will continue to update this list as they learn more about COVID-19.

Information about the City’s response and recovery related to COVID-19, as well as related announcements, can be found at www.joplinmo.org/coronavirus. For more details about coronavirus, please visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s website at https://www.cdc.gov/ .