NYCBS in Port Jeff Station to Start Testing First Responders Saturday

Starting May 2, the Port Jefferson Station location of the New York Cancer & Blood Specialists will begin to offer COVID-19 testing to local fire and ambulance districts.

A spokesperson for the company said multiple local fire departments have committed to be the first groups tested at the site. It is reserved specifically for first responders only. The site will offer both antibody and nasal swab testing for COVID-19, and such results of this testing could also be useful in determining the utilization and allocation of personal protective equipment.

“We are trying to help the fire departments determine who can go back out into the field safely, whether or not members were previously exposed, if they’re not actively infected anymore, or if they have the antibodies so it’s safer for them to go into certain areas,” Diana Youngs, the vice president of clinical operations at NYCBS said in a release.

“Increased, reliable testing is going to be the key to reopening businesses, public facilities, and protecting our workers,” Brookhaven town Supervisor Ed Romaine (R) said in a release. “Offering these tests to our frontline workers is a critical first step.”

The location which is closed on weekends ensures no potential exposure to patients. Nurses in PPE will test the local fire and EMS volunteers at a designated drawing station in the parking lot. The results are processed within 30 minutes for the antibody test and between 18-24 hours for the nasal swab test.

“Volunteer ambulance workers on Long Island place themselves at risk of contracting this virus every day that they report for duty. Every single call they respond to is a potential COVID-19 positive patient,” said Greg Miglino,  the chief of South Country Ambulance. “We’re grateful to New York Cancer and Blood Specialists for offering testing to these volunteers, who put their lives on the line, not for pay, but to serve the most vulnerable people in our community.”

The location is at 1500 Route 112 Port Jefferson Station.