The Barrie Chamber of Commerce announced a new rapid COVID-19 screening program on Thursday that would provide new rapid antigen tests to employees of small- and medium-sized Barrie, Ont., businesses.
The goal of the program is to identify asymptomatic COVID-19 workplace cases that may have been missed through regular screening and to help curb the spread of the virus.
“Chambers of commerce and boards of trade have been indispensable resources in their communities since the onset of the COVID-19 crisis,” Paul Markle, the Barrie Chamber of Commerce’s executive director, said in a statement.
“Public health and the health of our economy are interdependent. That is why our chamber is proud to distribute rapid tests to small businesses in our region.”
Businesses, including non-chamber members, with 150 employees or less can participate in the rapid screening program.
“Rapid testing is one of the key ways to keep workplaces as safe as possible during the pandemic as we wait for the full vaccination rollout to be completed,” Rocco Rossi, the Ontario Chamber of Commerce’s president and CEO, said in a statement.
“It will be an essential part of curbing the spread of COVID-19 in our communities so that we can get on the path to economic recovery faster.”
The testing kits will be ready for pickup at the Barrie Chamber of Commerce at the time scheduled when placing the order.
A representative from each business will be required to complete training prior to their first pickup and will be responsible for supervising the self-screening collection onsite.
Each business will be required to electronically submit their screening results and is recommended to screen their staff twice weekly. The data will be reported to the Ministry of Health bimonthly.
If a test result is preliminary positive for COVID-19, employees will need to leave the workplace, arrange a PCR test within 24 hours at an approved assessment location and self-isolate while they await their results.
The rapid tests are being distributed across Ontario to local chambers of commerce and boards of trade through the Ontario Chamber of Commerce and provincial and federal governments. The initiative was first piloted in the Waterloo region.