BUFFALO (WBEN) - For weeks, Erie County Legislature Chair April Baskin has been pushing for a Covid-19 testing site on the East Side.
On Friday morning, the Leroy Coles Library on E. Delavan Ave. opened up as a testing site for the first time, and Baskin cited high rates of positive tests and the prevalence of underlying health conditions in the area as reasons for the site's importance.
"It's important for the residents in this community to have a testing site that is accessible to them, in close proximity, something that they can get to if they are symptomatic," she said. "Thirty people called and made appointments and were able to be tested because they were experiencing symptoms that would leave them to believe that they had the virus, and they could continue to spread it throughout the community."
Baskin hopes the number of tests will increase as there's more awareness. The site is open Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 9 a.m to 1 p.m. To make an appointment, residents are asked to call Kaleida Health directly at 859-3222.
"The county's partnership with the City of Buffalo and Kaleida Health has led us to believe that they will expand it as the community utilizes it," Baskin added. "It's here; it's not going anywhere as long as the virus is in our community, and I think 30 people making appointments day one - 30 people that are sick and getting tested - that's important in terms of stopping the spread throughout the county."