NYC Test and Trace Corps announces partnership with Essen Health Care

Neighborhoods in the Bronx will now have increased access to COVID-19 testing thanks to a new partnership between the NYC Test & Trace Corps and Essen Health Care. The organizations announced a partnership Monday, wherein mobile units will initially be deployed in Soundview and Castle Hill and subsequently to surrounding areas where testing sites are less readily available. “Every New Yorker should get tested for COVID-19 and that begins with providing easy access to free testing in communities where the need is greatest,” said NYC Test & Trace Corps Executive Director Dr. Ted Long. “We are pleased to partner with Essen Health Care to expand testing options in underserved areas of the Bronx, and the Test & Trace Corps will provide the full range of our free support services to anyone who tests positive.” Mobile units will be available Monday and Tuesday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the corner of Lafayette Avenue and White Plains Road in Soundview and Castle Hill; 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Wednesday at the corner of Fordham Road and University Avenue in Fordham; and Thursday and Friday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the corner of 181 Street and Grand in Morris Heights. Testing is at no cost and confidential and no appointments are required. Essen Health Care mobile units have traveled to over 160 locations in the Bronx since the start of the pandemic and continue to be one of the largest testers of COVID-19 in this medically underserved community. “Since March, Essen has performed over 60,000 COVID-19 and antibody tests for the residents of the Bronx, with over 7,000 through our mobile units,” said Dr. Sumir Sahgal, founder and chief medical officer of Essen Health Care. “The Bronx community has been hardest hit with this virus from the beginning, so safe and accurate testing is a necessary resource required to maintain community health. We are pleased to be able to bring access to more people through this vital partnership.” Essen Health Care also offers COVID-19 testing at its 16 Essen Urgent Care centers in the Bronx, including Parkchester and Westchester Square. In addition, the Test & Trace Corps provides testing at no cost to patients in the Bronx at three acute care centers, two Gotham Health community health centers and more than 10 community testing sites and mobile units.