New age groups of South Florida residents can now get tested for the coronavirus amid loosened requirements at two testing sites in Miami-Dade County.
Officials said that anyone 18 years of age and over who has an appointment can be seen at the drive-thru facility at Marlins Park starting Wednesday. Anyone 45 years old and up will be able to make an appointment at the facility located at Charles Hadley Park in Northwest Miami-Dade.
To make an appointment, patients must meet medical requirements that include having specific symptoms associated with COVID-19. Symptoms can include suffering from a cough, running a high fever, suffering from tiredness and in some severe cases having a shortness of breath.
To make an appointment, you must call 305-960-5050.
The Hadley Park site opened Tuesday and is the fourth in South Florida offering drive-thru testing since the pandemic began, joining sites at both Hard Rock Stadium and Marlins Park in Miami-Dade County, and C.B. Smith Park in Broward.
Officials say two more sites could be opened in Miami-Dade in the coming weeks, including one in Hialeah. The location of the Hialeah site will be announced in the coming days.
"After weeks of making the argument for the City of Hialeah, which is sixth-largest city in the State of Florida, and its need of a testing site to serve its residents, especially our elderly population, I am happy to see that Governor DeSantis has made this decision," Hialeah Mayor Carlos Hernandez said in a statement. "This will be a great help to our city in the fight against the coronavirus."
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Tuesday’s opening came one day after Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced at the Hard Rock Stadium site in Miami Gardens that he was issuing a ‘safer at home’ order in the southeastern part of the state to be in place for Broward and Miami-Dade counties as well as Palm Beach and Monroe counties until at least the middle of April.
Gov. DeSantis also signed an order allowing retired law enforcement and health care workers to return to their jobs during the pandemic to help.
