While Governor Cuomo encourages testing for all citizens of New York State, and boasts of some of the highest testing numbers, there are no state-sponsored free COVID-19 testing sites in Dutchess County nor Orange County for people without insurance, as there are in several other counties.

In his press briefings, when speaking to the people of New York and in his nightly emails, Governor Cuomo urges people to use New York’s free testing sites, like here on September 1, 2020. It’s a simple directive, but one that is not readily available to residents in Dutchess and Orange Countries who may never have had health insurance, or recently lost health insurance.

Individual medical facilities may opt to service people with no insurance, and absorb the cost or file to state or federal programs on behalf of the patient. Others may offer a flat rate of $100. Dutchess County has provided a list of medical facilities who provide testing, and of those, which offer free testing to the uninsured. Information about that is below.

On October 1, 2020, the Governor announced that COVID-19 rapid testing would be made available to every county in New York State. But how that rolls out remains to be seen, since Dutchess County has never had state sponsored testing sites since they rolled out months ago for other counties.

According to a representative at the the New York State Department of Health COVID-19 Hotline for testing there are free, NY state-sponsored sites in Albany, Binghamton, Erie, Nassau, Suffolk County, Niagara, Rochester, Rockland, and Utica. Colleen T. Pillus, Communications Director with Dutchess County Executive Office, has confirmed that New York State has not put free testing sites in Dutchess County, and encourages residents to visit the Dutchess County testing page to see which facilities offer free testing to the uninsured. Those locations have been highlighted below in this article.

Says one Beacon parent who recently lost their New York City based job in the hotel industry when the luxury hotel laid off most of their staff: “Having no health insurance is why I am keeping my child home for school and avoiding friends. We are not participating in the Hybrid Learning program that Beacon is offering because we can’t afford to get tested. I haven’t begun the research to find what our free options are, if any exist.” While on furlough, the hotel kept some employees on while cutting salaries, but maintained their health insurance. A month later, the Beaconite’s job was terminated due to the pandemic, and health insurance lost.

COVID-19 Testing And Kids In School

As some people have returned to work or college, testing has become mandatory. Those in the film industry, for example, just started returning to work, only after contracts with testing companies were established to allow for rapid and lab testing. Some college students who attend classes in person undergo mandatory testing, like those at SUNY Orange, who are “pool testing” every few weeks, and do not ask for insurance, and say that students will not be billed.

Kids in the Beacon City School District are not required to take COVID-19 tests to attend or return to school, but a test is one of the options if a student is sent home with a fever, or if a student opted to voluntarily stay home because of the sniffles.

If a family does not have insurance or the cash to pay for the lab and/or office visit for testing, the options narrow for how to get a child back in the in-person version school (Remote Learning can still continue on the computer from home). Prices for testing for the uninsured can range from $65-$175. As an insured person, my cost averages $50 per person for an office visit to an urgent care, and the lab test is waved.

Attempt To Get Free COVID Testing Site In Dutchess County

Dutchess County’s County Executive Marcus Molinaro wrote to Governor Cuomo on May 22, 2020, asking him for a drive-thru testing site in the City of Poughkeepsie, to help low-income residents there get access to rapid testing. The letter (shown below) went unanswered, Colleen told ALBB. MidHudson Regional Hospital had been operating a drive-through testing facility in the Town of Poughkeepsie. The location proved hard to access for many in the City of Poughkeepsie, and Dutchess County partnered with the hospital to provide transportation. There is a minimum co-pay of $75 for this option, for the uninsured.

Below is the letter from Marcus Molinaro in full, which details the request:

Individual Testing Centers Opting To Wave Fees For The Uninsured In Dutchess County

The Dutchess County website does go into detail about insurance information, and options for the uninsured. You should pay attention to:

• If the waved fee includes the office visit and the lab test.

• If you do have insurance, which insurance company is covered.

• If you don’t have insurance, that the office fee and the lab test are waved. Not just one or the other.

• If the information has changed.

As of today (10/21/2020), according to the Dutchess County website, the following locations in or near Beacon offer a true no-fee for any of the testing (not the lab nor the office visit):

• Hudson River Health Care (now called Sun River Health, after a merger). The Beacon location on Henry Street, and they specify that testing is available regardless of insurance or immigration status. (845) 831-0400. Appointment for testing required. No telahealth visit required.

• Excel Urgent Care of Fishkill (845) 765-2240. Appointments encouraged, but walk-in welcome.

• Northern Medical Group. You must call to see if you qualify. A telahealth visit is required for evaluation prior to testing. Hopewell Junction (845) 226-4590, and Poughkeepsie (845) 452-9800

• Nuvance Health (a location in Wappingers Falls is listed)

• Castle Point VA Medical Center (Wappingers Falls (845) 831-2000)

Close, but not quite for uninsured in Beacon:

• CVS is offering to submit testing for those with no insurance, but only at select locations. The Fishkill CVS is not listed as participating in this.

NY Clusters And Higher Infection Rate For Mid-Hudson Region

The Mid-Hudson region does have a higher infection rate than other areas. In Governor Cuomo’s nightly email, he reported the figures from yesterday:

In Long Island, it was 1.6%.
In the Capital Region, 0.8%.
In Central New York, 1.9%.
In the Finger Lakes, 1.7%.
In the Mid-Hudson Region, 2.6%.
In Mohawk Valley, 0.5%.
In the North Country, 0.6%.
In Western New York, it was 2.0%.
And finally in the Southern Tier, 1.3%.

It is unclear why Dutchess County and Orange County do not have state-sponsored testing locations for the uninsured. If we get answers from the New York State Department of Health, this article will be updated.