Massachusetts

Remaining State-Run COVID Test Sites to Close by End of March

The 11 closing COVID testing sites are in Everett, Framingham, Lawrence, Lynn, New Bedford, Randolph, Revere, Springfield and Worcester

File photo of coronavirus tests.
Tomohiro Ohsumi/Getty Images

Massachusetts' remaining state-run COVID test sites are closing by the end of the month, the Department of Public Health confirmed Tuesday.

Winding down the 11 Stop the Spread sites in nine cities, including Worcester, Springfield, Everett and Lawrence, was part of a plan announced in July, according to the agency, which noted that their use has been falling since the summer.

Last month, the sites performed fewer than 1,000 COVID tests in one week for the first time since the start of the program, according to a representative for the department. People who need a COVID test can PCR tests at pharmacies, urgent care facilities and doctors offices, or opt for the widely available rapid tests.

More than 4.3 million PCR tests have been administered since the Stop the Spread program was created in July 2020, according to the agency. It scaled back to the 11 current sites last April, in Everett, Framingham, Lawrence, Lynn, New Bedford, Randolph, Revere, Springfield and Worcester.

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