Last month, Monroe hit a record-breaking point of 651 cases of COVID-19 in a single day on Jan. Though COVID-19 case counts and hospitalizations have recently dropped in Monroe County, physicians continue to caution the public to employ safety measures such as mask-wearing, social distancing and vaccinations to prevent infection and spread. "But with at-home tests being more available and accurate, they do provide a reasonable alternative for patients who might not be able to get to a testing center." Alex Benjamin, Chief Infection Control and Prevention Officer at Lehigh Valley Health Network, said. "Using at home tests does create challenges for public health and reporting reasons," Dr. Related: COVID hospitalizations drop in Monroe, but experts advise caution Medical experts have noted that public testing sites are valuable for their ability to collect data and assist in case tracking, as at-home test results are not reported - though they still play an important role in allowing the public to quickly find out if they have the virus or not. “We must continue to provide testing opportunities like these and others across the commonwealth to ensure Pennsylvanians have a place to go if they’ve been exposed or are experiencing COVID symptoms regardless of their vaccination status.” However, our work is far from over,” Acting Secretary of Health Keara Klinepeter said. “We are thankful that this partnership has made a difference for Pennsylvanians seeking to protect themselves and their loved ones over the past year and a half. Over 96 testing sites have been hosted across the commonwealth since September 2020, with 140,000 tests completed. The Monroe Public Safety Center-located at 100 Gypsum Road, Stroudsburg, PA, 18360-will run from 9 a.m. 1, the Pocono Township Emergency Building-located at 112 Township Drive, Tannersville, PA, 18372-will be open from 9 a.m. The Pocono Township Emergency Building and the Monroe Public Safety Center will host the free community-based testing sites this February. The Pennsylvania Department of Health is teaming up with AMI Expeditionary Healthcare to launch two COVID-19 testing sites in Monroe County this month. Watch Video: COVID-19: Tips to find at-home tests
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