So many people wanted to get their hands on free COVID-19 home testing kits in Youngstown that cars began lining up early Wednesday, with traffic eventually filling Market Street into the city's South Side.

Distribution of the test kits began 45 minutes earlier than the scheduled 8 a.m. start.

 

 

At around 9:45 am, the line of cars was cut off by police.  The last person allowed to pick up a test said they had waited three-and-a-half hours.

110 people who did not get the test kits were given cards by Health Department officials.  Those cards can be used to pick up a test on Thursday from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. at Wick Park on 260 Park Avenue.

After another 20,000 new COVID-19 cases were reported by the Ohio Department of Health on Wednesday, the Youngstown City Health District gave away 4,000 at-home tests.

BinaxNOW tests have been approved by the FDA for emergency use. They also have a 91.7% accuracy for positive test samples and 100% accuracy for negative results, according to the FDA.

Mahoning County has reported 366 new cases of COVID-19 since Christmas Day. Trumbull County saw 264 new cases in the same timeframe while Columbiana County had 109 confirmed positives.

 

Youngstown City Health District Commissioner Erin Bishop says the health department handed gave away a total of 4,000 covid tests on Wednesday, and adds that a number of the kits have been allocated to the likes of high rise-living facilities and churches in the inner city.

The Health Department receives the test kits from the Ohio Department of Health, and will continue to supply those who need them, as they receive more.