OCC Drive Thru Coronavirus Testing Will Continue

Photo by Bob Vosseller
Photo by Bob Vosseller

  OCEAN COUNTY – Residents will still be able to be tested for the coronavirus on the grounds of the Ocean County College in Toms River.

  The drive thru testing site on the campus offered from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, by appointment.

  “Testing continues to go smoothly at the Ocean County College drive thru test site,” said Ocean County Public Health Coordinator Daniel Regenye. “To date, we have provided more than 5,000 tests for COVID-19 at the site.”

  Emergency responders who reside in the county but work outside of it can also conveniently access the site to be tested by calling the Health Department at 732-341-9700, Ext. 7411.

  The testing requirements for county residents remain the same for the site.  “It remains imperative that people follow the requirements to be tested at the college,” Regenye said.

   He added, “we do not want anyone to show up at this testing site without following the requirements we have put in place. We are not going to do any health screenings at the site. It is just for testing for the virus.”

  What you need to do:

  • You cannot get the test unless you are showing symptoms. The most common symptoms of COVID-19 are fever, fatigue, a dry cough and shortness of breath.
  • Get a prescription from your doctor. Some medical offices are prescribing remotely (see below).
  • Register for a test. To register for the coronavirus test visit the Ocean County Health Department website at ochd.org and follow the online directions.
  • Assemble your necessary paperwork: prescription, proof of residency/identification, registration
  • Drive to OCC and enter through the Hooper Avenue entrance.
  • You stay in your vehicle while hospital medical personnel perform a nasal swab.
  • Wait three-five days for results. “All the results will be available on the BioReference Laboratories Patient Portal: Bioreference.com/patients/ and Ocean County Health Department and residents will be notified whether they test positive or negative,” Regenye said.

  “Learning whether you have coronavirus is just the first step,” Regenye said. “We want you to have the proper follow up care also.”

  For more information, visit ochd.org and co.ocean.nj.us and look for the heading for coronavirus updates, or call the Ocean County Health Department hotline at 732-341-9700, ext. 7411.

  How To Get A Prescription

  Regenye said that any practitioner (including nurse practitioner, advanced practice nurse, medical doctor, physician assistant etc.) who has “prescriptive” privileges in New Jersey can write a script for COVID testing, it does not necessarily have to be a physician.

  Additionally, many physicians have processes in place so that patients don’t need to come in.

  “Many health care providers are now doing telemedicine and are offering this service remotely and in the spirit of social distancing,” Regenye said. “Please do not unnecessarily expose healthcare workers or others in an attempt to obtain a physician’s order. Please use telemedicine when appropriate during this challenging time.”

  The hospitals assisting in staffing the testing site – both Hackensack Meridian Health and RWJ Barnabas Healthcare System – who are helping staff the test site – also have telemedicine that can provide prescriptions. They can be accessed here:

  Regenye said many pharmacies and other testing sites for asymptomatic people have opened throughout the state with some located in Ocean County. “While we remain a testing site solely for residents that have shown symptoms of Covid 19, we are recommending others who may want to be tested that are asymptomatic and do not have a script or are looking to have the antibody test done can access testing site information from various websites.,”

  Two websites providing this information are: covid19.nj.gov/pages/testing and covid19.nj.gov/pages/testing#test-sites.