By Joseph Garcia —
The University of Louisville has surpassed 20,000 COVID-19 tests for the fall semester as of Sept. 9. 297 of those tests have come back positive.
This number does include athletics cases which, as of Sept. 4, are reported to be at 92 positive cases. Testing results come from all on-campus testing locations, including tests performed at Campus Health Services and Bluewater Diagnosis Lab.
This update comes as the university again extends the mandatory free COVID-19 testing to Sept. 18. This is the third extension for testing since testing was announced prior to the fall semester’s start.
“Anyone who is coming to campus and who has not been tested since the mandatory testing period began on Aug. 24 should schedule an appointment,” the email to students said.
Drive through testing at Cardinal Stadium, however, will only be available through noon on Friday, Sept. 11.
The new testing locations, open Monday through Friday, include:
- Belknap Campus // University Club // 8 a.m. to noon and 1-5 p.m.
- Health Sciences Center // Abell Administration Building // 7-11 a.m. and noon to 4 p.m.
In their email, the university said that there may be an uptick in cases because of the Kentucky Derby and Labor Day weekend.
“Since some people went home or attended social gatherings over the holiday weekend, we may see an uptick in positive cases in the coming days,” they said. “Those who are asymptomatic but may have attended events where social distancing and mask policies were not followed are encouraged to get a test this week so the university can identify cases and work to prevent additional exposures. ”
Anyone who is showing symptoms for COVID-19 should contact Campus Health Services immediately for an appointment and rapid-testing at 502-852-6446.
The university is also providing free flu shots for all U of L students, faculty and staff. Those will be available until Sept. 21. A schedule of when and where those will be available will be released next week.
File Graphic // The Louisville Cardinal
