Local businesses have a new tool to stop the spread of COVID-19 through its workforce, thanks to a partnership between the Ontario Chamber of Commerce, the Fort Frances Chamber of Commerce and the provincial government.
The FCC has been approved by the Ministry of Health (MOH) to provide local businesses with the Rapid Antigen Screen Testing kits. This testing is available for all small and medium businesses up to 150 staff. All businesses in Fort Frances are able to order their kits through the FCC. Training is available, and a designated staff member must complete it, along with some forms, before kits are released.
The test produces results in 15 mins and full instructions will be provided once sign up is complete. The program requires weekly reporting to the FCC< who will pass the results to the MOH.
The test is self administered under guidance of the approved trained member of staff. It does not need to be the owner of the business and the owner of the business does need to sign the chamber form.
For now, The Fort Frances Chamber of Commerce will be ordering and storing the kits (each kit contains 25 tests). Screening twice a week is recommended. The FCC will provide each business with enough kits for a one month supply, which will arrive in roughly two weeks.
In order to process the request for tests, interested businesses need to contact the FCC at thefort@fortfranceschamber.com, and provide the legal business name, address, name of the contact person, phone number, fax number and email, and how many employees will be getting tested.
