Press Releases

NCDHHS has announced community testing events in Edgecombe, Halifax, Hertford, Johnston, Northampton, Sampson and Wake counties as part of the initiative to increase access to free COVID-19 testing for historically marginalized communities that currently have limited testing sites.

NCDHHS is reporting the state’s highest one-day number of laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 cases with 2,462 reported. It is the highest one-day increase to date. Hospitalizations are also at a record high with 1,093 people currently hospitalized with COVID-19.

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) today issued a Request For Proposals for an initiative that will send up to 250 Community Health Workers to historically underserved areas with high COVID-19 caseloads. Starting in August, teams of trained frontline public health professionals will connect North Carolinians affected by COVID-19 with needed services and support.

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) today took action to decrease barriers to COVID-19 testing by issuing a Statewide Standing Order for COVID-19 Diagnostic Testing, as well as a State Health Director Temporary Order on COVID-19 Diagnostic Test Reporting.

NCDHHS is joining the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in alerting consumers of adverse health effects associated with methanol-contaminated hand sanitizers. The warning follows CDC reports of seven people in New Mexico who experienced serious health events, including permanent blindness and death, due to purportedly ingesting methanol-contaminated hand sanitizers or rubs manufactured in Mexico.

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services today launched the Community testing in High-priority And Marginalized Populations (CHAMP) Initiative to increase access to no-cost COVID-19 testing for African American, LatinX/Hispanic and American Indian communities that currently have limited testing sites.

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) is reporting the state's highest one-day number of laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 cases with 2,099 cases reported.

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) is launching a new social media marketing campaign as part of a larger public outreach campaign designed to reach historically marginalized populations disproportionately affected by COVID-19.

NCDHHS will partner with Omnicare, a CVS Health company, to make facility-wide testing available to residents and staff in all North Carolina skilled nursing facilities. There are over 400 nursing homes in the state with approximately 36,000 residents and more than 30,000 staff. Testing will begin in July and continue through August.

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services has awarded grants to five local North Carolina organizations to help address the disparate impact COVID-19 is having among the state’s Hispanic and LatinX communities.