Suffolk plans back-to-school COVID-19 test kit giveaway
Suffolk County will give away about 3,500 free COVID-19 testing kits on Aug. 2. Credit: Newsday / William Perlman
Suffolk County will make about 3,500 free COVID-19 testing kits available for residents in a giveaway next week with about a month to go before the new school year.
The kits will be available for pickup between noon and 6 p.m. on Aug. 2 in the lobby of the H. Lee Dennison Building at 100 Veterans Memorial Hwy. in Hauppauge. Officials said kits will be handed out on a first-come, first-served basis.
“While many of us have resumed daily life, living with COVID-19, it is imperative that as we prepare for kids to go back to school, parents have the tools that we know help prevent exposure and spread,” Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone said in a statement Thursday.
Gov. Kathy Hochul said last week that her administration planned to distribute 3 million testing kits to schools statewide before the school year begins.
Nassau County officials did not immediately respond to requests seeking comment on testing kit giveaways.
John Valenti, a reporter at Newsday since 1981, has been honored nationally by the Associated Press and Society of the Silurians for investigative, enterprise and breaking news reporting, as well as column writing, and is the author of “Swee'pea,” a book about former New York playground basketball star Lloyd Daniels. Valenti is featured in the Emmy Award-winning ESPN 30-for-30 film “Big Shot.”
