Early childhood teachers getting help with rapid COVID-19 antigen tests

Originally Appeared in WCVB
By Todd Kazakiewich

January 5, 2022

As the testing crisis stretches on in Massachusetts, there is new help for early child care providers across the state.

Most educators in K-12 schools got rapid test kits already, and now tests are being made available at no cost to people who work in licensed Massachusetts early education and childcare.

"We've gotten about 40,000 rapid tests this week with the partnership of the Department of Early Education and Care,” said Binal Patel, chief program officer of Neighborhood Villages.

Inside the cafeteria of the Epiphany School in Dorchester – which is doing remote learning this week – a team from the nonprofit Neighborhood Villages organized 40,000 rapid antigen tests to be distributed to 2,100 childcare programs throughout Massachusetts, as part of an ongoing effort to keep child care centers healthy and open.

"These are for the staff at childcare programs, currently, to use. We also do a pool testing program with all the childcare programs in the state, and that's available to staff and children. It's a weekly surveillance PCR test that they can use to catch the spread, before it happens," Patel said.

Provisions like the tests are especially important amid strong demand for rapid antigen and PCR tests. At walk-in sites across the state, people were waiting in the rain on Wednesday. The demand is so great that hundreds of people – including families – were braving below-freezing temperatures early Wednesday morning in Allston — some started lining up before 5 a.m. 

"This is kind of the best/only option for us," one person said. 

"We were on all of the websites, we went to our doctor, we couldn't find an appointment anywhere, and that's why we're here at 6:30 for walk-ins," another person said.  

"There's, you know, no rapid tests in stores. It's just, unfortunately, a domino effect that is taking a toll on everyone here," said another person who was hoping to get tested. 

As for the tests for people who work in childcare, Neighborhood Villages is still taking orders or a one-time supply of rapid tests.