Dodger Stadium housing new COVID-19 test site
LOS ANGELES –– Mayor Eric Garcetti today opened a new COVID-19 testing site at Dodger Stadium, with the capacity to test 6,000 Angelenos a day free of charge –– making it three times larger than any other location in L.A. County.
“Dodger Stadium is a place where Angelenos usually rally around a common goal of victories on the field –– and today, it is uniting us around a mission to save lives.” said Mayor Garcetti. “We will continue to grow our testing capacity, so we have the data and tools to get ahead of outbreaks, stop the spread of this virus, and inform our next steps toward getting businesses back online, workers back on the job, and people back to their lives.”
The new site will be the 36th across the county. To announce this significant milestone, Mayor Garcetti was joined by critical partners who helped make this step possible:
• The Los Angeles Dodgers, who contributed the space in their stadium parking lot
• Community Organized Response Effort (CORE), which is dedicating 60 staff to help operate the site
• The Los Angeles Fire Department, which will oversee testing site logistics
“The Dodgers have and always will be a resource for the community, and we’re proud to partner with Mayor Garcetti, LAFD and CORE on this important initiative,” said Dodger President & CEO Stan Kasten. “Dodger Stadium has hosted its share of memorable and historic events, but this could be one of the most significant - as it will help re-open Los Angeles and ultimately save lives.”
The Dodgers have supported the City and County of Los Angeles’ COVID-19 response by hosting a testing site that tested nearly 40,000 individuals over a 10-week period and serving as a staging area for LAPD and LAFD. In addition, the Dodgers and the Dodgers Foundation launched joint relief efforts in early April and have worked with team partners to provide more than 113,000 meals to the most vulnerable Angelenos and more than $150,000 worth of food, water, hygiene necessities, gift cards and Dodger products to community organizations. The team has also provided grants to the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank, My Friend’s Place, the Mayor’s Fund for Los Angeles, and Brotherhood Crusade with additional grants to be provided to organizations that address homelessness, basic needs and food insecurity. Fans can learn more and those that are able to donate can join the Dodgers’ relief efforts by visiting Dodgers.com/Relief.
“Mayor Garcetti and the LAFD were pioneers in testing in the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, and have set an example for large scale free testing, allowing for us to safely reopen. We are grateful and proud of the Dodgers and long-standing partners of CORE, such as Live Nation, who are coming together at this super site to serve even more Angelenos in this fight against COVID-19,” said CORE Co-Founder and CEO Ann Lee.
Mayor Garcetti’s office kicked off the city’s free public COVID-19 testing on March 20 –– and just 40 days after that step, Los Angeles had become the first major city in America to offer wide-scale testing to all residents, with or without symptoms. Together with County leaders, the City developed a centralized registration platform, giving any county resident the ability to make an appointment at a nearby testing center. Right now, these sites are testing an average of 15,000 people per day; to date, about 450,000 people have been tested.
To sign up for a testing appointment, visit coronavirus.lacity.org/testing.