Orange County opens second COVID-19 testing super site at shuttered O.C. fairgrounds

A worker from 360 Clinic passes a COVID-19 self-administering test

By Sara CardineStaff Writer

Aug. 26, 2020 5:18 PM PT

As California pushes to increase its coronavirus testing capacity, Orange County officials on Wednesday opened a new testing site at Costa Mesa’s OC Fair & Event Center to aid essential workers, first responders and those potentially exposed to the virus.

Individuals exhibiting symptoms, healthcare workers and residents and employees of congregate living facilities — along with teachers, grocery and food workers and public and utility employees — can register to be tested Mondays through Fridays, from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., as long as they live or work in Orange County.

The new O.C. fairgrounds testing super site is the second of its kind countywide. The first, at the Anaheim Convention Center, has conducted more than 10,000 tests since opening July 15.

Both locations are backed by $550 million in federal CARES act funding received by the county and are operated through a partnership between the Orange County Health Care Agency, the cities of Anaheim and Costa Mesa and 360 Clinic. Laboratory services are provided by Fulgent Genetics.

Coronavirus testing super site at the O.C. Fairgrounds in Costa Mesa.

Rep. Harley Rouda (D-Laguna Beach), who attended a news conference marking the opening of the Costa Mesa site, said the boost in testing capacity is vital.

“This long-anticipated step of providing testing has finally arrived, thank goodness, for people of Orange County who desperately need testing and tracking, as well as masking, distance and leadership,” Rouda said afterward.

The new site comes as health officials Wednesday reported 448 new infections and another seven deaths, bringing the cumulative number of infections to 47,090 and countywide fatalities to 918. So far, a total of 611,144 tests have been given, including the 5,649 reported Wednesday.

It has been four days since Orange County was removed from a state virus watch list. If testing positivity rates, new cases and hospitalizations remain within thresholds defined by the California Department of Public Health, county schools may resume in-person instruction.

O.C. Board of Supervisors Chairwoman Michelle Steel said bringing the Costa Mesa testing site online is timely, as many teachers, students and school employees prepare for the potential reopening of school campuses in the wake of steadily declining countywide infections and hospitalizations.

“We understand that, with the start of school, there will be a need for our teachers, students and families to use super sites such as Costa Mesa to ensure that they are free from COVID-19 in order to return to the classroom,” Steel said.

“This site can get people in and out quickly and return their result within 48 to 72 hours,” she added.

Earlier this month, Board of Supervisors Vice Chairman Andrew Do and 4th District Supervisor Doug Chaffee introduced a motion to allow schools to use the county’s testing capability to meet state guidelines for school reopening. It passed unanimously.

Do said Wednesday the county has four testing sites that together are conducting about 3,800 tests per day.

“I cannot understate how important this testing capability is and how it fits into everything we’re doing in the county to open up,” he added.

Dr. Clayton Chau, director of the Orange County Health Care Agency and newly named county health officer, estimated the Costa Mesa testing site would likely process about 500 tests per day in the first week, before ramping up to around 1,000 daily tests by month’s end.

Costa Mesa Mayor Katrina Foley said the city was proud to host the new site alongside the OC Fair & Event Center and to help provide a vital means of identifying and isolating potential future hot spots for the virus.

Foley, who took a test at the site the day before in a dry run, said the process was simple.

“If you think you are at all exposed to anyone who has COVID-19, you should go online, check the box ‘exposed’ and come get tested,” she advised.

To register for free coronavirus testing, visit ochealthinfo.com/covidtest or call 1 (800) 446-8888. To learn more about who can be tested, visit occovid19.ochealthinfo.com/supersite.