Special to the Las Vegas Tribune
To accommodate a surge in testing demand, the drive-thru COVID-19 testing and vaccination site in the parking lot of UNLV’s Paradise Campus at 851 E. Tropicana Ave. will be closed Thursday, Jan. 6, and will reopen Sunday, Jan. 9, in the parking lot of the Sam Boyd Stadium at 7000 E. Russell Road.
Upon relocation to the larger UNLV space, the site’s normal hours of operation will resume five nights a week, Sunday through Thursday, 5:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. The site, which is operated by Clark County, the Nevada National Guard, the Health District and other partners, will have the estimated capacity to do 300 COVID-19 vaccines and 1,200 tests each night on a first-come, first-served basis depending on daily supplies and available staffing.
The Pfizer vaccine is available for people age 12 and up, in addition to the Moderna and Johnson and Johnson vaccines for those 18 and older. No pediatric doses of the Pfizer vaccine are available at this site. Parents can book appointments for children age 5-11 at most other clinic locations listed on the Health District’s website at
www.snhd.info/covid-vaccine. Pediatric vaccines also are available at pediatrician offices, clinics and pharmacies. COVID-19 vaccines remain the most effective measure to protect against serious illness and
hospitalization and to reduce the likelihood of new variants emerging.
Health officials recommend that everyone 5 years and older get fully vaccinated, and everyone 16 and older who is fully vaccinated get a booster dose if they are eligible to protect themselves and others
from COVID-19. The public may call the state’s vaccine hotline at 1-800-401-0946 or visit www.NVCOVIDFighter.org for information.
While no appointments are available at the drive-thru site for tests or vaccinations, clients seeking COVID-19 tests there are encouraged to set up an account online with Color, the lab providing contracted lab testing services. The account registration process enables clients to receive their test results through the phone number or email address they provide. A Color registration link for the location is available on the company’s website at https://tinyurl.com/yhvadbjv.
Tests are self-swab PCR tests. Results take about 72 hours to process. For test result inquiries, contact Color at (844) 531-0545 or by email at mycovidtest@color.com.
The demand for testing in the community is high at this time, and people may experience longer wait times at existing sites or be directed to other locations if daily capacities are reached. A list of
community testing sites is available on the Health District’s website at www.snhd.info/covid-testing. An online test site finder tool also is available on the Nevada Response website at https://nvhealthresponse.nv.go
Appointments are recommended. While walk-ins are accepted, they are based on availability and might not be available at all sites. People seeking testing are encouraged to check websites frequently for appointment availability.
Symptoms of COVID-19 include fever, cough or shortness of breath. Those who experience symptoms are encouraged to get tested and to stay home if they are sick to limit community spread of the virus. People
also are encouraged to get tested if they have been in contact with someone who has been sick. Those who are asymptomatic of COVID-19 or experience mild symptoms do not typically require medical treatment
unless they have underlying health conditions
(https://www.cdc.gov/coronavir
that put them at risk for developing severe cases of COVID-19. Generally, healthy people with mild or no symptoms are advised to isolate at home, monitor their symptoms and seek medical care if their condition worsens.
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