MAINE, USA — As Maine continues its effort to stop the spread of COVID-19, the state is set to launch six new "swab and send" locations this week.
There are now 27 swab and send sites sponsored by the Maine Department of Health and Human Services across the state.
Funding for the sites comes from $52 million dollars of federal funds allocated to preventing the spread of the coronavirus in Maine
All locations offer free tests to eligible Mainers with or without symptoms.
"Creating Maine-based testing capacity is especially important as national laboratories struggle to handle other states' surge of COVID-19 cases," Maine DHHS Communications Specialist Jackie Farwell said. "And prevents the Maine State lab from experiencing the shortages of testing supplies and re-agents that occurred early in the pandemic."
According to DHHS, with these new locations going live this week, 90% of Mainers live within 30 minutes of a COVID-19 testing site.
The 27 DHHS-sponsored swab and send sites are:
- Augusta: MaineGeneral
- Bangor: Northern Light
- Bar Harbor: MDI Hospital (currently operational for frontline workforce testing for participating businesses)
- Belfast: Penobscot Community Health Care (PCHC)
- Blue Hill: Northern Light
- Brewer: PCHC
- Brunswick: MaineHealth (operational on August 24)
- Calais: Calais Regional Hospital
- Damariscotta: MaineHealth (operational on August 26)
- Dover-Foxcroft: Northern Light
- Ellsworth: Northern Light
- Farmington: MaineHealth (operational on August 27 )
- Fort Kent: Northern Maine Medical Center
- Greenville: Northern Light
- Kittery: Promerica Health (mobile, operational on August 25)
- Lincoln: Penobscot Valley Hospital
- Norway: MaineHealth (operational on August 25 )
- Old Town: PCHC
- Portland: Northern Light
- Pittsfield: Northern Light
- Presque Isle: Northern Light
- Rockport: MaineHealth (operational on August 27 )
- Sanford: York County Community Action Corp./Nasson Health Care
- Skowhegan: Redington-Fairview General Hospital (operational in mid-September)
- South Portland: Northern Light (mobile)
- Waterville: Northern Light
- Westbrook: City of Westbrook
The Department is also separately supporting York Hospital in its drive-through point-of-care testing site which has been open since July 1, 2020.
You can find locations near you by visiting the Keep Maine Healthy website.