On January 7, 2022, Governor Gavin Newsom activated the California National Guard to support local communities in their response to the escalating demand for COVID-19 (Coronavirus) testing. Mono County was assigned National Guard members who will provide increased capacity at the Sierra Star Clubhouse (2001 Sierra Star Pkwy.) OptumServe testing site in Mammoth Lakes.
“California has led the country’s fight against COVID-19, implementing first-in-the-nation public health measures that have helped save tens of thousands of lives,” said Governor Newsom. “We continue to support communities in their response to COVID by bolstering testing capacity.”
Activation of the National Guard comes as the Omicron variant continues to spread rapidly across the globe, accounting for at least 80% of COVID-19 cases in California. The National Guard plan to deploy over 200 California National Guard members across 50 OptumServe sites throughout California. National Guard members will function as interim clinical staff while permanent staff are hired, greatly enhancing capacity for walk-ins, while assisting with crowd control and back-filling for staff absences – all in an effort to increase testing capacity.
Mammoth Hospital remains in a “Green” status; however, the demand for testing has created a bottleneck in the Emergency Department and clinics for other patients trying to obtain services for various other conditions. Mammoth Hospital encourages residents and visitors to utilize OptumServe and Mono County Public Health clinics for COVID-19 testing, and reminds exposed and/or symptomatic individuals to isolate until symptoms are resolved regardless of the ability to test.
Both OptumServe and Mono County Public Health provide COVID-19 testing clinics in Mono County (pending weather-related issues). OptumServe offers testing most Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays from 11am – 7pm in Mammoth Lakes at the Sierra Star Golf Course (2001 Sierra Star Pkwy.). Testing staff typically take lunch between 3-4pm.
Pre-registration is strongly encouraged for both OptumServe and Mono County Public Health testing clinics. Mono County Public Health will be adding pop-up testing clinics as additional resources become available.
To help slow the spread of COVID-19, Californians are encouraged to get vaccinated, get boosted, wear a mask indoors and get tested if sick.
The Mono County COVID-19 testing schedule for January can be accessed here.
OptumServe Pre-Registration: Click here.
Public Health Pre-Registration: Click here.
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If the tests are not reliable and the vaccine does not prevent covid and instead weakens your immune system allowing you to become more susceptible, why is anybody getting them. If you want to lessen the symptoms of covid then vitamin C and Zinc are a much more healthier way to accomplish this without risking your health by playing Russian Roulette getting the experimental shot that has killed and permanently debilitated millions of people.
This,probably a good idea,and hopefully it stays at a “helpful” level it’s meant to be,and not some type of “Military presence” meant to cast “fear” in some or to “obey orders” some might try to act on or think it is.
Probably not politically correct to say,but some ,maybe all of us know a today’s young person or two in the today’s Armed Forces that join the Military mainly to look and hope for some type of “battle” or hoping for a “war” (be careful what you ask for ) and a chance to play tough-guy and play soldier,taking political sides with who sits in office.
Myself knowing of a couple taking “selfies” of themselves wearing T-shirts with the word “kill” written on them dozens of times,bashing the Chinese and posting their photos on facebook.
Back in the early 70’s when I was in the USAF,if one were to do or say that,IF they had smart-phones and facebook to entertain themselves in boot camp,they’d find themselves in hot-water with their superiors in short order.,
The phrase “all politics is local” used to be a commonly held belief and used as an explanation for success in our country’s political system for decades, but in today’s political environment, large amounts of money pour in from all over the country to local races in hopes of influencing and deciding election outcomes. The result is that now “all politics have become national.” It is not a good change because it’s not about “doing what is right” or “doing what is best” for our country and its citizens; it is about national political party power, influence, and money; people very far away making decisions for what is supposedly best for our local communities.
When Covid-19 became politicized at the national level, it sadly became so at the local level as well. The only thing that politicizing a public health crisis seems to have accomplished for us has been to assure that ever larger increasing numbers of the our citizens have become infected, seriously ill, or died needlessly.
The toxic manipulation of public opinion and seeking support or denial of a major public health crisis has become, for all too many American voters, a political litmus test of party loyalty and affiliation. If it were instead an intelligence test, all of us would probably fail it.
Unfortunately, there is no miracle vaccine to save us from our own cupidity, stupidity, or arrogance.
needed this the last 2 weeks, the throngs of people clogging the testing sites are finally gone. I think we can handle the locals. When I was in the Bay Area over christmas, I tried to get tested, you had to live in the county to be tested. Why didn’t Mono County do that? Say go home if you think you have Covid and get tested there! Makes perfect sense.
Health, like politics, is a very local concern. It’s just within our front door. Anything beyond that is hype and propaganda.