Update: Due to high call volume for appointments on its regular phone number, Penn Medicine Lancaster General Health has set up separate phone number for scheduling drive-through Covid testing appointments: It is (717) 588-1515.
Previously reported:
The county commissioners on Wednesday approved the county's agreement with Penn Medicine Lancaster for a Covid-19 testing site at the Public Safety Training Center at 101 Champ Blvd. in East Hempfield Township.
Meanwhile, LG Health released new details about the operation, including expanded hours.
The center is scheduling appointments from 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., LG Health said. Testing will be available for ages 3 and up, and while testing will be offered for symptomatic patients only, a doctor's order will not be required. Nor do you have to be an LG Health patient.
LG Health will bill the test to patients' insurers, and copays and deductibles and other terms may affect final out-of-pocket cost. The cash price for testing is $57.24, LG Health said; for patients without insurance, LG Health said it "will assess the situation."
In some cases, patients may be eligible for financial assistance to cover the tests.
To schedule appointments, use the MyLGHealth system or call (717) 544-5941. The center will be closed on four weekdays: Monday, Jan. 17; Monday, Feb. 14; Friday, Feb. 18; and Monday, Feb. 21.
An outpouring of community support is helping LG Health ramp up staffing quickly for the site, Dr. Michael Ripchinski, LG Health chief clinical officer, told the commissioners.
"We'll be fully staffed and ready to go for Friday's opening," he said.
The center will be able to turn around several hundred tests per day. Initially, all testing will be by appointment only. If patient volume permits, LG Health may drop the appointment requirement, Ripchinski said.
