To the Editor:
I would ask the year-round community of Martha’s Vineyard to take advantage of the TestMV site in the upcoming days and weeks. I hear a lot of individuals commenting that it is “a point in time test.” While this is true at the individual level, the importance of the testing changes at the local level. Every test done is a valuable public health tool to gauge community spread. With the back-to-school discussion on the front pages, let us all do our part so we can make informed decisions for the well-being of the students on the Island. Additionally, we should work together to increase awareness, rather than fear. There is the very real potential for this fear to result in fewer people being willing to get tested and to comply with contact tracing. The virus can only be managed if it can be identified and contained with testing, tracing, and quarantining. We have worked so hard for so long. We have been given the gift of asymptomatic, no-cost testing. Do not let it go to waste.
Celia Gillis
Oak Bluffs