Questions about who is being tested for COVID-19? Read here

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  • 3/21 statement from emergency management
    3/21 statement from emergency management
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Emergency management's position on who has been tested

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If you have symptoms including dry cough, fevers of over 100.4 degrees that come and go, fatigue and shortness of breath call your doctor immediately. 

On Saturday, March 21 at 1:30 p.m., Hopkins County Emergency Management released a statement that in conjunction with CHRISTUS Mother Francis hospital, they determined that 31 cases met the criteria from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for testing for COVID-19, also known as coronavirus. It takes between three to seven days for tests to return with results, emergency management stated.

On Monday, March 16 at 7:30 p.m., EMS director Brent Smith told County Fire Chiefs one person from Hopkins County had been tested, and the county was awaiting results. He stated labs needed to be sent to Gregg or Smith county to be verified, and testing could take as many as several days to return and that the county had the capacity to test 25-50 individuals at a time. 

On Tuesday, March 18 at 11:00 a.m., Hopkins County emergency management coordinator Andy Endsley stated in a press conference that four individuals had been tested. 

On Wednesdsay, March 17 at 4:30 p.m., Endsley stated emergency management was unaware of how many tests had been performed as tests would be performed though mainly private practicing physicians and emergency management would not be informed unless a test came back positive. 

On Friday, March 20 at 11:00 a.m., Endsley stated: "We found out that was a not a good practice to do [release numbers of tests performed.] For one thing, don't want to violate anybody's rights on that side of it. Not that we have done that.”

At 7:48 p.m. on Friday, March 20 emergency management released this statement: "Our team is not aware of specific numbers of samples that have been sent for testing. We will be notified of a positive result if there are any and an investigation will begin to determine the need for further action to protect the public."