Westfield To Get Free Coronavirus Testing Thursday

WESTFIELD, NJ — The Union County covid-19 Mobile Test Unit will be in Tamaques Park in Westfield Thursday (Nov. 5) from 2 to 5 p.m.

The details are:

• Saliva test
• 2 p.m. to 5 p.m.
• Tamaques Park
• No appointment required
• Mask required.
• Bring a smartphone or tablet.
• No food, drink, smoking or chewing gum 30 minutes prior.
• Results under 72 hours.

For more details and other mobile testing stops, visit the county website.

Mayor Shelley Brindle said on Tuesday night that two members of the Westfield Police Department and two Public Works employees have tested positive. She said, "While none of these employees are Westfield residents included in our counts, we felt it was important to share this information as we wish them all a speedy and full recovery."

For a related story Tuesday on Westfield statistics and a concern about students quarantining, click here.

More than 220,000 Americans and 14,500 people in New Jersey have died from the virus as of Tuesday. At the height of the crisis in New Jersey on April 30, 460 people passed away in 24 hours.

Here are some other recent Westfield coronavirus and reopening updates:

HOW TO GET TESTED

• Union County has added mobile walk up test sites in addition to the testing site located at Kean University. Testing is free for Union County residents and is by appointment only with no car required; participants must wear masks and observe social distance. Any Union County resident can make an appointment for a test, whether they have symptoms. To pick a location, date and time, and to make an appointment online, visit ucnj.org/coronavirus-update/walk-up.
• Union County residents who need to make an appointment by phone can call 908-518-4307 for assistance. Non-profit organizations and other community groups can call the Union County Office of Emergency Management at 908-654-9881 to request a visit from the Mobile Test Unit.

• To find out more, you can also contact your doctor, visit covid19.nj.gov/testing, or call 211.

ARTS/ENTERTAINMENT/DINING

• See past Westfield Patch stories about Halloween and Addamsfest events.
• Tickets for the Westfield 300 Summer Movie Series are free but require advance registration here.
• Read about updated Quimby Street events, rules, and street closings here.
• Indoor dining is allowed at 25 percent capacity. For a list of rules, click here.
• To read about outdoor dining in Westfield, click here.
• Gov. Murphy signed an executive order allowing gyms, health clubs, and indoor amusement facilities to reopen at 25 percent capacity effective Sept. 1. Equipment must be adjusted to allow a minimum of six feet of distance, and must be sanitized between uses. Everyone must wear masks. More details can be found here.

NATIONAL TRENDS

• More than 900 health care workers have died of the virus nationally. Others are simultaneously fighting misinformation and hoaxes as they try to fight the virus.

HOW TO GET HELP WITH HEAT, RENT, AND MORE

• During the State of Emergency in New Jersey, no tenant is permitted to be evicted from their home or apartment for the inability to pay rent. Talk to your local mayor's office if you are experiencing difficulties.
• The CARES act has made money available to help with rent in each city. More information is here.
• New Jersey residents can get help with heating and energy bills. Information is here.
• Various other avenues of relief and benefits have also been made available, including family leave for 12 weeks if you can't work due to your child's school or camp being closed, and changes to unemployment rules to help those who were at a job for a short time, or freelancing.

LONG-TERM CARE

• Recently, there were 159 long term care facilities with active outbreaks, the state Department of Health said last month. The state announced that deaths at the facilities had more than doubled since May 1.
• New Jersey residents became alarmed at the high number of residents who have passed away in nursing homes, rehabs, and similar facilities. The state announced plans in May to increase testing at some long term care facilities.
• The state released death toll statistics in spring for long-term care facilities like rehabs and nursing homes. See the list here.
• You can report problems with long term care facilities here, or if you suspect coronavirus related misconduct, here.
• Some New Jersey long-term care facilities reopened for limited visits, with precautions, in July.

Here are statewide coronavirus resources:

• NJ COVID-19 Information Hub: https://covid19.nj.gov/
• General COVID-19 questions: 2-1-1
• NJ COVID-19 hotline: (800) 222-1222

Got news? Email caren.lissner@patch.com. To be the first to get news alerts with breaking stories in Westfield, or to get a free local newsletter each morning, sign up for Patch breaking news alerts or daily newsletters.