State to Open COVID-19 Testing Center on Campus

SUNY Oneonta will host one of the state’s 10 new COVID-19 community testing sites announced by Gov. Kathy Hochul on Monday. The Oneonta site – which opens Friday, Jan. 7 – will provide testing specifically for those who are experiencing COVID-19 symptoms.

Testing will take place in the training room of the college’s new Emergency Services Building, located at the lower end of campus, and is open to anyone in the community who is experiencing mild to moderate COVID symptoms. Appointments are required and must be scheduled in advance. Testing, which is saliva-based, is provided at no cost to individuals. The site will be open from 8:30 a.m. to noon on Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays.

This initiative is made possible thanks to a partnership between the State of New York, City of Oneonta, Otsego County Department of Public Health and Syracuse-based Quadrant Biosciences, whose Clarifi COVID-19 Saliva test is the most sensitive saliva test on the market and can detect all known variants, including Omicron. It is the same test used to screen SUNY Oneonta students, faculty and staff each week.

“We are proud to be able to assist our region with increased access to COVID testing, which will help alleviate the pressure local hospitals and doctor’s offices are experiencing right now,” said SUNY Oneonta President Alberto Cardelle. “The use of Quadrant’s saliva testing helped allow our campus to have a successful fall semester, so we are confident in its efficacy. We are happy to partner on this so that more members of our community have access to this important test and are grateful to all those who made it happen.”

City of Oneonta Mayor Mark Drnek said, “As mayor of the city of Oneonta, I applaud the governor’s quick actions, as well as those of our community partners at SUNY Oneonta in bringing this much-needed testing site to our city.”

Nine other sites will open this week at State University of New York campuses, with more expected to open in the coming weeks. The Oneonta site is scheduled to operate through the end of February.

“Bringing more options for testing is important to our community,” said Otsego County Department of Health Public Health Director Heidi Bond. “Testing and knowing your status can help to reduce transmission in our community. Anyone with symptoms of COVID-19 should get tested, regardless of their vaccination status or prior infection.”

Appointments for testing at the Oneonta site can be scheduled at https://bit.ly/covid-test-oneonta.

Contact Covid-support@quadrantbiosciences.com with any questions.