FREE COVID-19 At-Home Test Kits & PPE

What: FREE COVID-19 Antigen Test Kits & PPE for licensed early childhood care programs in Santa Barbara County

When: Saturday, February 19th

Where: Santa Maria from 8 am-11 am at 124 W Carmen Ln (registration in back) OR

Santa Barbara from 2 pm-4 pm at 4141 State Street

Children’s Resource & Referral (CRR) is pleased to announce that it will be distributing 12,000+ free at-home COVID-19 antigen test kits to Santa Barbara County Licensed Child Care Sites and Licensed Exempt Centers on Saturday, February 19th at the CRR Santa Maria Building (124 W Carmen Ln) from 8 am-11 am and at the CRR Santa Barbara Building (4141 State Street) from 2 pm-4 pm. These distributions will be contactless drive-thru. Licensed Santa Barbara County Child Care sites and Licensed Exempt Child Care Centers are eligible to receive one antigen home test kit per child enrolled at a licensed care site – as supplies last.  The distribution is limited to pre-registered licensed Child Care Sites and Licensed Exempt Centers in Santa Barbara County. Pre-registration link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/ppe-supplies-covid-test-kit-distribution-for-child-care-tickets-261403794787

CRR received this allocation of at-home antigen COVID-19 test kits from the Santa Barbara County Public Health Department and the California Department of Social Services. PPE includes N95 adult masks, children’s surgical masks, hand sanitizer, and antigen test kits.

“CRR is thankful to the many community partners who continue to advocate for Child Care Providers to have access to PPE supplies to ensure the health and safety of personnel and children and their families being served throughout the county,” said Michelle Graham, CRR CEO. “Special thanks to Santa Barbara County Public Health, the County of Santa Barbara, First 5 Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara Child Care Planning Council, and California Department of Social Services for collaborating to bring these much-needed supplies to families.”

About the resilience of early childhood care providers in our County, Child Care Planning Council Coordinator Christian Patterson stated, “Santa Barbara Child Care Planning Council continues to advocate for the health and safety of the early childhood community. We are proud of the collaboration between our local childcare agencies, which allowed access to the necessary resources our community needs to thrive. We appreciate the determination that our educators, families, and children have shown during the pandemic.”

About the importance of these resources, CRR COO Jacqui Banta stated, “Safe, open, and accessible early childhood care sites are the backbone of our economy and are critical for essential workers and working families. Supplying early childhood sites with free COVID-testing kits and PPE will help to ensure they can operate safely. The majority of early child care sites in Santa Barbara County are small businesses, owned and operated by women and women of color, keeping this critical workforce and the children they care for safety is an issue of economic justice.”

About the positive impact, this will have on local families, Wendy Sims-Moten, First 5 Executive Director stated, “The distribution of COVID-19 testing kits to childcare providers is such wonderful news! Childcare providers are essential frontline workers who care for our children.  It is important to ensure they are included and have access to testing kits to keep our children in care and parents working.  It is good to be in partnership with Santa Barbara County Public Health, Department of Social Services, and the Santa Barbara County Education Office – Child Care Planning Council and Children Resource and Referral in this very important effort to keep COVID out and keep children in care.”

The CDC and CDPH encourage individuals and families to also order free at-home test kits online at https://covidtests.gov/.  For the most up-to-date information on COVID-19, visit the Santa Barbara County Public Health Portal (https://publichealthsbc.org/).

Child Care Providers MUST pre-register: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/ppe-supplies-covid-test-kit-distribution-for-child-care-tickets-261403794787

 About CCR: The mission of Children’s Resource & Referral of Santa Barbara County is to develop strong and healthy families by providing education, care, and resource systems to children, their parents, and caregivers, with a special emphasis on low income and under-represented children and families. The CRR envisions that all children will have access to high-quality, safe, nurturing, and inclusive environments that build a foundation for life-long learning.

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