Governor Laura Kelly today announced that COVID-19 testing will continue to be available at no-cost through the end of 2021 to everyone at community testing sites across the state.
“More than 800,000 Kansans have received at least one shot, but we know that testing is still a critical and necessary tool until every Kansan is vaccinated,” Governor Kelly said. “Accelerating vaccinations and increasing testing in tandem will help save lives and keep schools and businesses open. It’s how we get back to normal.”
To-date, over 3.3 million PCR and antigen COVID-19 tests have been conducted in Kansas. Over 1.3 million Kansans have been tested at least once.
The State recently launched a “Know Before You Go” campaign to remind Kansans that testing continues to be available. Kansans are encouraged to get tested before going or coming back from anywhere, even if they show no symptoms. This includes visiting family, friends, going on vacation, going shopping, or even going somewhere local. Tests are one of the easiest ways Kansans can protect themselves, their families, coworkers, and members of the community.
To schedule a test, please visit kdheks.gov/coronavirus to find the testing site closest to you. No-cost testing is available to everyone at community testing sites across the state. Additionally, ask your workplace or school if testing is available on-site.
Free testing is available for all K-12 schools and school-related activities in Kansas. For more information, school administrations should send an email to COVID-19@ks.gov.
To continue to support testing, the State has increased internal lab capacity, volunteer testing sites are being piloted, state-contracted lab relationships have been extended through the end of June, and 90+ community testing partners have been guaranteed funding through the end of 2021.
“We continue to explore ways to make testing easier for Kansans and provide greater access to testing throughout the State,” Governor Kelly said. “For example, rapid antigen tests, which produce results in ~15 minutes, are now more widely available throughout the State and additional mass testing locations will begin to offer antigen testing starting next week.”
Positivity rates in Kansas have also been trending in the right direction. Kansas’s positivity rate for March 2021 to date is 2.8%, which is ~75% lower than Kansas’s positivity rate at the beginning of 2021.
“We hope this favorable trend will continue into 2021. There is hope on the horizon,” Governor Kelly said.