Announced by Mayor Kyriacou during Monday’s City Council Meeting 12/20/2021, Beacon is slated to receive a limited number of COVID-19 rapid self-tests that can be taken at home. Thanks to the COVID-19 response plan that New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced on 12/20/2021, home tests and KN95 masks are being sent to municipalities, starting now. Other states like Ohio have been providing these since before Thanksgiving.

Dutchess County Executive Marcus Molinaro announced today via press release that the tests are coming in limited supply, and will be issued 1 per household, where proof of residency in Beacon is required. Shortly thereafter Beacon’s Police Department announced today that the first shipment of tests has arrived and are available in limited capacity to 1 per household with proof of residency of living in Beacon. Tests aren’t the only thing arriving to the Beacon PD headquarters - see the two giant donated pallets of soda that arrived earlier in the week, which the Beacon PD is also looking to donate to residents.

ALBB called to verify hours of pickup with the call-in desk of the Beacon Police Department, and was told that the department is open 24/7, and that people can pick up one test at any time - with proof of Beacon residency, and it’s only 1 test kit per household. Inside of each kit there are two tests.

The Beacon Police Station is located at 1 Municipal Plaza, which is the building on the way to the train station. The police department is the door on the lower right, below the main door to City Hall. There is a parking lot for easier access.

County Executive Molinaro said: “As we are in the midst of this COVID-19 surge during the busy holiday season, the County’s goal is to distribute these tests and masks throughout our community to help curb this growth in positive cases. We thank both our local and state partners for their cooperation in assisting Dutchess in this critical mission.” He added that KN95 masks are being donated to municipalities as well and may be available with the test kits.

As of Wednesday 12/22/2021, according to the Dutchess County Dashboard, there are 1,745 Active Cases of COVID-19 in Dutchess County, which is an increase since last Friday, when it was 1,487. There are 99 Active Cases in Beacon (last week was 65), and there are 77 people in the hospital with COVID-19 in Dutchess County (last week was 68 people hospitalized).

Very few people are boosted, as their initial vaccinations begin to wane. The CDC says that boosting improves the body’s ability to fight the virus. Find out where to get vaccinated in or near Beacon at www.vaccines.gov (it’s such an easy website!)

How Many At-Home COVID-19 Tests Will Be Available?

According to the county’s press release, at home COVID-19 tests are being distributed based on population of the municipality. Tests will be distributed on a first come, first serve basis, and will not be held if someone calls ahead. The press release also stated: “While supplies are limited, distribution from New York State is expected to be recurring and the County will continue to work with local municipalities to distribute test kits as they are received.”

With To Do With A Positive COVID-19 Test Result

According to Dutchess County’s press release, residents who receive a positive result from an at-home COVID-19 test must:

• Immediately self-isolate, even if they are vaccinated; as part of 10-day quarantine; and

• take a picture of the positive at-home test result within 24 hours and report the positive case to the Dutchess County Department of Behavioral and Community Health (DBCH) at www.dutchessny.gov/COVIDpositive

After reporting the positive result to the County health department, residents will receive a phone call from a contact tracer and are strongly encouraged to answer that call. However, with current high case volume, it may take a few days before a contact tracer calls. Residents are asked to be patient and continue isolating. If a resident’s symptoms worsen or they experience difficulty breathing following a positive result from an at-home test, they should consult their physician or dial 9-1-1.

 While at-home tests approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) or Centers for Disease Control (CDC) are reliable, it is possible to receive a false negative. If residents experience symptoms and test negative, they’re urged to take another test within 24-48 hours. 

Negative test results from at-home tests may not be sufficient to return to work or school.  DBCH will not accept negative test results from at-home for early release from quarantine. Negative results do not need to be reported to DBCH.

Vaccination Status Of City Employees At City Hall

During the 12/20/2021 City Council Meeting, Mayor Kyriacou explained how they have decided to comply with Governor Hochul’s mask mandate for unvaccinated people in indoor spaces: “We have chosen to all wear a mask rather than to ask for vaccination,” he explained. “Upstairs, everyone is vaccinated. Other departments of the city where not everyone is vaccinated…they are wearing masks. Applies to all indoor spaces.”

The Police Department is located in the downstairs section of City Hall, as are other offices of other departments in the City of Beacon.

How To Know When A New Shipment Arrives

Mayor Kyriacou said that availability of the test kits would be posted on the city’s website. For this first round, that website has not been updated, nor did a SWIFT robo-call go out to make the announcement. The Beacon Police Department’s Facebook post was the first announcement. Within 24 hours, the first shipment of these tests have been picked up by residents. Consider following the Beacon Police Department Facebook page to see if they make updates as to when a new shipment arrives, and when it has been depleted.