Freezing Cold Cancels Monday’s COVID Testing at Cody Stampede Rodeo Grounds
Written by Andrew-Rossi on October 25, 2020
Cody Regional Health has closed Monday’s drive-thru COVID-19 testing at the Cody Stampede Rode Grounds due to the well-below freezing temperatures expected.
Due to the increasingly high demand for COVID-19 tests as the nation enters its “fall surge,” Cody Regional Health moved the location of its drive-thru testing from the main West Park campus to the Cody Stampede Rodeo. Tests are offered Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays starting at 8 a.m.
The tests are in such high demand, vehicles have arrived as early at 6:30 a.m. to ensure they can receive one of the 40 tests administered every morning.
The National Weather Service in Riverton calls for sunny skies and a high near 22 degrees. However, the wind chill value could make that as low as -20.
Due to these well-below freezing temperatures, Cody Regional Health is closing its Monday clinic. They will be installing a heated shelter at the Rodeo Grounds for staff to seek refuge during the cold days to come.
Tuesday and Thursday’s clinics are scheduled to proceed as planned, as of Sunday evening.
While Cody Regional Health will continue to offer its drive-thru COVID-19 testing in the coming weeks and months, they encourage Cody residents to order the at-home saliva tests being offered by Vault Health. These tests are available for free for all Wyoming residents.
The hope is that these free tests will ease the burden on all the regional providers currently offering COVID-19 tests, especially as the number of cases continues to climb upwards.
For anyone wanting to be tested or displaying symptoms of COVID-19, the following options are available in Park County:
- Cody Regional Health Drive-Thru Testing at the Cody Stampede Rodeo Grounds
- Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays at 8 a.m. on a first-come, first-serve basis
- Cody Regional Health Walk-in Respiratory Clinic at the Cathcart Medical Center
- Monday thru Friday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. for symptomatic patients by appointment only
- Billings Clinic Cody at 201 Yellowstone Avenue
- Monday thru Thursday from 8 – 11 a.m. by appointment only
- Powell Respiratory Clinic at 777 Avenue in Powell
- Monday thru Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. by appointment only
