New Bucks Co. COVID Test Sites Open As Cases Spike After Holidays

BUCKS COUNTY, PA — New coronavirus cases were on the rise once again in Bucks County last week, in a wave health officials blame on Christmas and New Year's gatherings.

In response, the county has opened three free COVID testing centers on local college campuses. Those sites are expected to switch into vaccine distribution centers once vaccines are widely available to the public.

Last week, the state Department of Health reported 2,710 new confirmed COVID-19 infections in Bucks County — an average of 380 new cases per day. That's a 12-percent increase from the previous week and comes two weeks after Christmas and one week after New Year's celebrations.

Statewide, Pennsylvania saw a similar increase, with its 58,945 new cases marking a 14-percent increase over the previous week.

"We think this is an increase from the holidays," said Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine.

Bucks County reported 31 more deaths from the coronavirus last week. Just nine of those who died were residents of nursing homes and other long-term care facilities, officials said.

Among the deaths, nine victims were in their 90s, seven were in their 80s, eight were in their 70s, four were in their 60s, two were in their 50s and the youngest was 49.

The week's deaths brought Bucks County's total to 940 since the coronavirus pandemic began.

Bucks County's test positivity rate remained high but ticked down slightly last week, from 15.4 percent to 14.7 percent, according to the health department. The county has had 34,178 confirmed cases in total.

In response to rising case numbers, Bucks County announced last week that it would open three sites for free COVID-19 testing in the county. Those sites opened on Monday.

The tests will be given at the locations seven days a week through Jan. 31, with the capacity to perform up to 350 tests per day at each site. They are:

• Bucks County Community College, Newtown Campus, 275 Swamp Rd., Newtown: 11 a.m.-7 p.m.
• BCCC Lower Bucks Campus, 1304 Veterans Hwy., Bristol: Sun.-Thurs., 10 a.m.-7 p.m., Friday and Saturday, 2-8 p.m., Saturday, 10 a.m.-7 p.m.
• BCCC Upper Bucks Campus, 1 Hillendale Rd., Perkasie: 10 a.m.-7 p.m.

A planned location at another local college was replaced by BCCC's Newtown campus because officials realized the final week of planned testing would interfere with students returning to that school's campus, officials said. The campuses are expected to be switched to vaccination sites when a vaccine is widely available to the public.

On that front, medical facilities in Bucks County continued to receive doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines last week. Through Saturday, the state had reported that 9,404 partial vaccinations and 1,023 full, two-dose vaccinations had been given in Bucks County.

Statewide, 227,617 partial vaccinations and 18,787 full vaccinations have been given, according to the health department.

Bucks County remains in Phase 1A of Pennsylvania's rollout, during which healthcare workers, EMS workers and long-term care facility residents and staff are the main focus.

The next phase, 1B, is expected to start some time in February, according to health officials. That will include people at least 75 years old, people living and working in care facilities not covered in 1A, first responders, corrections officers, food service workers, postal workers, manufacturing employees, teachers and other educators, clergy, public transit employees and some other caregivers.

Bucks County has created on online portal for COVID-19 vaccine information on its website.

As of Saturday, 189 patients were hospitalized with the coronavirus in Bucks County, with 26 of them in on ventilators. The county had ample available hospital beds, officials said, with 35 percent of adult ICU beds and 32 percent of medical surgical beds open.

County officials were urging the public to download the free COVID Alert PA app, which uses Bluetooth technology to let a person know that they have been exposed to COVID-19 without compromising the identity or location of either the person using the app or of the person to whom they may have been exposed.

Correction: An earlier version of this report included outdated information on a testing location. The outdated information has been removed and information about testing at BCCC's Newtown location has been added.