Mass testing site at Jim Miller Park to close

As coronavirus numbers continue to fall, Cobb-Douglas Public Health announced that it will close its mass testing site at Jim Miller Park on March 5. Jim Miller Park has been used throughout the pandemic as a mass testing and vaccination site but is shutting down because the demand for such services are low. 

Cobb-Douglas Public Health officials say the site has recently processed only a dozen or so tests per day. Deputy Director Lisa Crossman said that with 10 employees manning the site, it’s “not the most effective use of resources” to keep it open.

Two of the department’s test sites will remain open, Riverside EpiCenter and the Wellstar East Cobb Health Park. People can also get tested at a number of private facilities, such as local pharmacies, according to Crossman. In addition, Cobb County has been distributing free take-home coronavirus tests. The next distribution event will be March 5, from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. at Piedmont Church in Marietta.

Last year the site was closed, but as cases began to spike in late December, testing resumed again in January 2022. Should cases spike again, the department can have mass testing sites up and running in three to four days, Crossman said.