NC Coronavirus Update December 28: North Carolina Opens 3 New Free COVID 19 Test Sites in Raleigh

RALEIGH, NC (WTVD) – Here are the latest updates on COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, in North Carolina.

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TUESDAY MORNING CUP
Three new free COVID-19 test sites open in Raleigh.

Marsh Creek Park, Roberts Park and Method Community Park are the three new sites that join the Departure Drive building, Radeas Labs and Swinburne parking lot as a drive-through test site.

Click here for more information on each location.

Health officials suggest that anyone returning from vacation trips or gatherings should test three to five days after your last contact with people outside your bubble.

The tests at these drive-through locations are completely free and usually yield results within 24-48 hours.

Meanwhile, another candidate is moving for the vaccination of COVID-19. Novavax is now the fifth company to launch a large-scale trial in the US.

The vaccine is being mass-produced in Morrisville by Fujifilm Diosynth Biotechnologies. Fujifilm added 85 new jobs in Morrisville this year, and the company said it wants to expand again in 2021.

The vaccines already approved by the FDA are now being distributed to nursing homes and long-term care facilities in our state.

CVS and Walgreens vaccinated residents and staff members of the facilities Monday.

Meanwhile, North Carolina reports more COVID-19 patients in hospitals than ever before: 3,192. The number contains a record 733 adults in intensive care.

Despite pressure to increase the number of tests increased, the positive rate continues to climb – it is 14.7%, which is much higher than the state’s target of below 5%.

New COVID-19 statistics released in about 12 hours

MONDAY
17:00
The stadium’s capacity will be adjusted to 1,500 for the Carolina Panthers’ final home game against the New Orleans Saints on January 3, 2021, the team announced Monday.

PSL owners who have purchased a ticket for the game have the option to receive a refund or apply payment to their 2021 invoice. An automatic refund of all single-game ticket purchases by Ticketmaster is applied to the same payment method within 30 days. Tickets purchased through other channels are subject to their respective policies.

16:40
Residents and staff at nursing homes and long-term care facilities in North Carolina started receiving the first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine on Monday.

In the pharmacies of CVS and Walgreens, the vaccines are administered, but due to privacy considerations, the specific sites receiving the first shots are not identified.

According to CVS, nearly 128,000 people will be vaccinated in nearly 900 locations across the state over the next three months.

16:13
Congressman GK Butterfield said he received a first dose of COVID-19 vaccine.

The North Carolina Democrat tweeted a photo of himself saying that “following CDC recommendations and directions from the physician’s office, I received my first dose of COVID-19 vaccine. Although it is a critical step is to crush the virus, we must continue on science-based security measures: practice social distance. Wear a mask. “

15:41
Wake County is hosting six COVID-19 tests this week and through 2021, with several sites open on New Year’s Day and park locations offering Sunday hours.

There is no cost, no appointment required, no insurance required and no ID required. Walk-ups are welcome.

The following venues will be open every week from Monday to Saturday, including the test on Friday 1 January:

• Swinburne Drive-Thru Testing Parking Lot, Kidd Road 2845, Raleigh, 27610, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

• Departure Drive Building Drive-thru Testing, 5809 Departure Drive, Raleigh 27616, 08: 00-18: 30 (Saturdays 08: 00-12: 30)

• Radeas Labs Drive-thru Testing, 907 Gateway Commons Circle, Wake Forest 27587, 07:00 to 14:00

As of Tuesday, Wake County is offering free trials in three City of Raleigh parks:

• Roberts Park, 1300 E. Martin St., Raleigh, 27610

• Marsh Creek Park, 3050 N. New Hope Road, Raleigh, 27604

• Method Community Park, 514 Method Road, Raleigh, 27607

Test on all parking lots is as follows:

• Tuesday 11:00 to 16:00

• Wednesday & Thursday, 08:30 to 16:00

• Friday-Sunday, January 1-3 NO TESTING

• Monday 4 January, 11:00 to 16:00

• Tuesday – Saturday 5-9 January, 08:30 to 16:00

• Sunday 10 January from 11 am to 4 pm

Check here for the latest test times and locations.

14:53 nm
The Lee County Government Department of Health has confirmed 218 new cases of COVID-19 since last Monday for a total of 3,401 cases of COVID-19.

13:14
The Halifax County Department of Health reports one new death and 145 new cases of COVID-19.

Across the province, there were 45 deaths and 2,628 total positive COVID 19 cases.

11:50 am
The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services reported 3,888 new COVID-19 cases on Monday – the second day of daily increases below 4,000. These numbers are abnormally low, but the number of tests completed in the last two days is also abnormally low. This is probably due to lower processing volumes during the holidays.

Hospitalizations, on the other hand, set a new record with 3,192 on Monday.

366 confirmed COVID-19 patients have been admitted to hospitals in the past 24 hours. 286 suspected patients were admitted at the same time.

The number of COVID-19 patients in the ICU also had a record high on Monday with 733. Last Monday, there were 686 COVID-19 patients in the ICU.

84 percent of hospital patients are older than 50 years. However, most cases (40 percent) are in the age group of 25 to 49 years.

6:20 am
The Transport Security Administration announced that it had selected more than 1 million people the day after Christmas.

The day after Christmas was the second most traveled day since the pandemic began. The day most traveled took place the day before Christmas when TSA selected 1,191,123 people.

The daily numbers this holiday season are about half the number of travelers selected on the same day in 2019.

The TSA numbers come as the Center for Disease Control and Prevention urges Americans to stay home because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

As the cases continue in the wake of the Thanksgiving trip, health experts warn that a similar surge is likely to occur in a few weeks due to the trip to the end of the year holiday.

Monday Morning Headlines
Residents at nursing homes and long-term care facilities in North Carolina will begin receiving the COVID-19 vaccine on Monday.

CVS and Walgreens are arranging the vaccinations, but due to privacy concerns they do not identify the specific locations that will receive the shots first.

We do know that as of Monday, CVS will be administering the vaccines at nearly 900 facilities in North Carolina and more than 40,000 nationwide. The group expects to vaccinate as many as 4 million residents and staff members.

CVS has said it will offer the vaccine next year.

Meanwhile, COVID-19 statistics in North Carolina remain at or near record levels.

To date, more than half a million people have tested positive for the virus in North Carolina, with at least 6,549 dying from it. Updated numbers will be announced around 12:00.