Dartmouth COVID Testing Firm: Operations ‘On Pause’

DARTMOUTH — The privately owned Illinois-based company behind a Dartmouth COVID testing site that was shut down by state and town health officials Thursday has released a statement noting that its operations will be paused for a week.

Center for COVID Control stated yesterday that high demand for its services amid the omicron surge has stressed the firm's staffing resources in a subset of its locations, "affecting our usual customer service standards and diagnostic goals."

According to the company, demand for tests increased tenfold, from 8,000 tests per day to 80,000 nationwide over the last few weeks.

On Thursday, the CCC site on State Road in Dartmouth was closed after town Board of Health officials delivered cease and desist letters from the state's health department, which said the site was performing COVID tests without state approval.

Dartmouth Public Health Director Chris Michaud said that along with serving the letters from the state, the town's Board of Health also issued a closure order after investigating recent complaints specific to testing procedures at the State Road spot.

He added that the center "must remain closed until terms of both DPH and the Board of Health have been met."

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Two other CCC testing locations in Massachusetts, in Needham and Worcester, were also shuttered.

“Center for COVID Control is committed to serving our patients in the safest, most accurate and most compliant manner," said CCC founder and CEO Aleya Siyaj.

"Regrettably, due to our rapid growth and the unprecedented recent demand for testing, we haven't been able to meet all our commitments.”

“We’ve made this difficult decision to temporarily pause all operations, until we are confident that all collection sites are meeting our high standards for quality," she added.

The business announced Thursday that it would temporarily pause its collection of patient samples "to ensure the highest customer service and diagnostic quality."

Its centers will be closed from Jan. 14 through Jan. 21, with plans to reopen on Saturday, Jan. 22, the firm stated.

According to the company, the pause will be used for additional staff training, a refocus on customer service and communication practices, and ensuring compliance with regulatory guidelines.