Juneau’s COVID-19 Screening Hotline expands hours, now open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Juneau’s COVID-19 Screening Hotline is now also available during morning hours. If you have new symptoms related to COVID-19, even mild ones, contact your health care provider or call the screening hotline at 586-6000, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. Symptoms of COVID-19 include cough, chills, shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, diminished sense of taste or smell, diarrhea, fatigue, fever, headache, muscle/joint aches, nausea, rash, chills with shivering, runny nose, sore throat, or increased sputum (phlegm) production.

Testing may be arranged at the local Drive-Thru Testing Center if appropriate. All testing at the drive-thru center is by appointment only. If someone meets the criteria for testing but is homebound or has no transportation, a community paramedic can conduct an in-home test.

Early and broad testing is a crucial component of Juneau’s economy reopening. Increased testing will help keep the lid on COVID-19 by making sure any new cases are detected quickly. The State of Alaska’s testing criteria is broad. Health care providers are encouraged to test anyone who’s experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 as well as individuals with new, unexplained symptoms that may be clinically compatible with COVID-19.

The Drive-Thru Testing Center has the capacity to test up to 40 people from the general public a day. Lately, it’s testing, on average, seven people each day. The screening hotline and testing center have recently started accommodating pre-procedural screenings in line with State of Alaska Health Mandate 15.

A total of 1,142 COVID-19 tests have been conducted in all of Juneau. Juneau has so far had 27 positive cases.