New Coronavirus Testing Site Opens At Medical Center In Inwood

INWOOD, NY — A new coronavirus testing site has been launched at the Dyckman Clinica De Las Americas in Inwood.

The testing site, opened Wednesday in a tent outside the medical center, was launched at the 175 Nagle Ave. medical center by the city's Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, hospital system and Mayor Bill de Blasio, along with elected officials.

The site will expand testing for Northern Manhattan and its minority communities, which have been especially hard hit by the virus, officials said.

"The ZIP codes of Northern Manhattan I represent have been among the hardest-hit by COVID-19," said state Sen. Robert Jackson. "...I have been saying that the only way to turn around those outcomes is to provide more access to testing and more public health infrastructure in general."

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(Office of Rep. Adriano Espaillat).

Data broken down by zip code released by the city reveals that the lower-income parts of New York City seemed to be the hardest hit by the virus. 19 of the 20 lowest concentrations of coronavirus cases hail from affluent zip codes, the New York Times reported.

Data also shows that Hispanic residents and other minorities are also more likely to die from the coronavirus than other New Yorkers.

“The system is broken and it’s a matter of equity and imbalance that still disproportionately impacts Latino and African American communities, which are consistently at higher risks for health conditions both environmental and inherited and who are dying at much higher rates due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” U.S. Rep. Adriano Espaillat said.

The Inwood testing site joins another coronavirus testing spot, opened by SOMOS Community Care, at 2360 Amsterdam Ave. That site was the first bilingual testing site that is not accessed by a drive-through, SOMOS said.

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