Samaritan Medical Center Announces Changes to Outpatient Pre-Surgical COVID-19 Testing Requirement and Closure of Drive-Up Testing Site Location

Published on: March 28, 2023

Watertown, NY – Samaritan Medical Center will no longer require COVID-19 testing prior to outpatient surgical procedures effective Saturday, April 1, 2023, in accordance with New York State Department of Health guidance.  Exceptions to this are surgical patients scheduled to be an inpatient post-surgery or any surgical patient with symptoms or at the provider’s discretion.  Those patients will test on the day of scheduled surgery upon arrival and admission to the hospital. All patients will be screened for any COVID-19 symptoms before the procedure.  Any patient that is sick or ill will be rescheduled for their surgical procedure. 

As a result of this change, Samaritan’s COVID-19 Drive-Up Testing Site at 1575 Washington Street, Watertown, will close effective April 1, 2023.  Other testing sites are available at local pharmacy locations as well as North Country Family Health Center, 238 Arsenal Street, Watertown, NY, 315-775-7777.  For a full listing of community-based COVID-19 testing sites, visit www.hhs.gov/coronavirus/community-based-testing-sites.