Scotch Plains and its health department along with our County, State and Federal Health Agencies are closely monitoring the Coronavirus outbreak and its potential impact in the United States and our area in particular. 

Everyone can do their part to help us respond to this emerging public health threat. 

This webpage is dedicated to important updates and resources as it relates to the Coronavirus (Covid-19) and its impact on the community.

The Union County Kean Drive-Thru will increase operating hours to  Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm. Starting on that date, we will produce results for the COVID-19 virus, Influenza A, and Influenza B all on the same swab.

Testing is available to all Union County residents who wish to be tested, whether or not they are experiencing symptoms. It is free of charge, regardless of whether you have insurance or not.

It is also available to all first responders and frontline health workers who are asymptomatic and that work in Union County, regardless of their residence.

There is now a senior-specific call center at 856-249-7007 that can assist those 75 and older with registering for, scheduling and rescheduling appointments from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily.   

Seniors who are 75 and older on the New Jersey Vaccine Scheduling System wait list may receive calls or messages from the NJ COVID Vaccine Call Center to schedule dedicated appointments. They may also be able to access dedicated appointments at certain hospitals as well as the following retail pharmacies across the state:

• CVS: (800)-746-7287
• Rite Aid: (800)-748-3243   
• Walgreens: 1-800-9254-73367 (1-800-WALGREENS) * For Walgreens account holders only

You can view this information from the NJ Department of Health here. For more COVID-19 vaccine distribution information in New Jersey, visit aarp.org/njvaccine.  Book your vaccine here: https://ucnjvaccine.org.

New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy and New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced the launch of COVID-19 exposure notification mobile apps in their respective states that will serve as crucial tools to supplement the effort to trace and contact individuals subject to a COVID exposure.

The apps, COVID Alert NJ and COVID Alert NY, notify users of potential COVID-19 exposure while maintaining user privacy and security. With today’s launch, New Jersey and New York join Pennsylvania and Delaware in creating a regional COVID Alert app network that operates across state lines to stop the spread of COVID-19. Connecticut has also announced it will launch an app in the near future using the same technology. 

The free mobile apps–available to anyone 18 or older who lives, works, or attends college in New Jersey or New York — are available for download from the Google Play Store or Apple App Store. Donwload the COVID Alert NJ App by visiting covid19.nj.gov/app. 

Click here to read the entire press release. 

The Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders, in conjunction with governmental, educational and healthcare partners, have opened the state's first County-run, drive-through facility for testing of the COVID-19 virus at Kean University.

Please note that testing is by appointment only and you must be registered through your doctor or healthcare provider. Union County residents, Union County First Responders and essential personnel, who have been instructed by their doctor or healthcare provider to be tested for COVID-19, must be given a prescription and registered by their doctor or healthcare provider on a secure portal where they will receive an appointment for the drive-through.

This is the only way to receive an appointment to be tested. For the safety, health and security of the volunteers at the site, the testing location will not allow patients without vehicles to enter campus, even with a valid prescription and appointment. If you do not have your own transportation, please discuss with your healthcare provider before scheduling an appointment. 

Also, if you believe you may have symptoms of COVID-19, there is a self-assessment tool that you should use that has been developed by the State of New Jersey. This tool will assist you to determine what actions you can take to protect you and your loved ones’ health and help determine whether you should be tested for COVID-19, and can be accessed at https://self.covid19.nj.gov/

The Union County COVID 19 drive-through facility is being run by the County through a partnership with the Overlook Medical Center (Atlantic Health System) in Summit, the Trinitas Regional Medical Center in Elizabeth, and Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (RWJ Barnabas Health) in Rahway. The Freeholder Board, County Manager and his staff worked with State Senators Joseph P. Cryan, Nicholas P. Scutari, Governor Phil Murphy’s office, Kean University, and the New Jersey State Department of Health in bringing the facility online.

IMPORTANT CHANGES AT THE COUNTY TEST SITE: 

To be able to provide a larger amount of testing to our residents we are speeding the process at the COVID-19 Drive Thru Facility at Kean University in the following manner: 

If you have a VALID PRESCRIPTION for Covid-19 testing please email COVID19TEST@UCNJ.ORG with the following information:  Your name, address, phone number, email address, date of birth and a photo of your script, and then you may directly go to our Union County Drive-Thru Testing Center for COVID-19 at Kean University.  The testing Center is open Monday-Friday from 9 am-5 pm.

Social distancing involves taking measures to slow the spread of COVID-19 by limiting the opportunities for exposure. The general recommendation is to avoid crowds and close contact by keeping six feet between yourself and others. When social distancing is properly implemented, it can be an important strategy to reduce the spread of COVID-19.

Grocery Stores and Specialty Food Stores Executive Order No. 107 designated grocery stores and other stores that sell food goods as essential. The supply chain for these stores has not been disrupted and these stores are permitted to operate during their normal operating hours. These stores should continue to follow social distancing and hygiene best practices. 

Click here to view the New Jersey Department of Health Social Distance Guidelines for Retail Businesses.

Community mitigation is a set of actions that persons and communities can take to help slow the spread of respiratory virus infections. Community mitigation is especially important before a vaccine or drug becomes widely available.

Click here to view the CDC's nine-page infographic defining a framework for actions in the community to both prepare for and mitigate community transmission of COVID-19 in the United States.

Selection and implementation of these actions are guided by the local characteristics of disease transmission, demographics, and public health and healthcare system capacity.

The goals for using mitigation strategies in communities with local COVID-19 transmission are to slow the transmission of disease and in particular to protect:

• Individuals at increased risk for severe illness, including older adults and persons of any age with underlying health conditions
• The healthcare and critical infrastructure workforces  

These approaches are used to minimize morbidity and mortality and the social and economic impacts of COVID-19. Individuals, communities, businesses, and healthcare organizations are all part of a community mitigation strategy.

Signals of ongoing community transmission may include detection of confirmed cases of COVID-19 with no epidemiologic link to travelers or known cases, or more than three generations of transmission. Implementation is based on:

• Emphasizing individual responsibility for implementing recommended personal-level actions
• Empowering businesses, schools, and community organizations to implement recommended actions, particularly in ways that protect persons at increased risk of severe illness
• Focusing on settings that provide critical infrastructure or services to individuals at increased risk of severe illness
• Minimizing disruptions to daily life to the extent possible