WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind – Purdue University announced today it is formulating plans to require and pay for all West Lafayette-bound students to be tested for COVID-19 before moving into residence halls and attending classes this August.
The program will be led by Dr. Esteban Ramirez, chief medical officer at the Protect Purdue Health Center (PPHC), and was developed in consultation with the Protect Purdue Medical Advisory Team. Ramirez is an experienced internist and clinical assistant professor at the Indiana University School of Medicine-West Lafayette. Under Dr. Ramirez’ direction, the PPHC is the University’s virtual health center launched last week to coordinate the overall workflow of COVID-related case management on campus.
Through its Protect Purdue initiative, undergraduate, graduate and professional program students will soon be provided instructions and assistance on how and when to get tested for COVID-19, beginning in early August before traveling to campus.
Student test results will be sent to the Protect Purdue Health Center, and those testing positive should not travel to West Lafayette or come to campus for any reason until they isolate for 14 days and are medically-cleared to return by the PPHC.
Failure to complete a COVID-19 test and have those results filed with the Protect Purdue Health Center prior to arrival will affect a student’s ability to move into a residence hall or begin in-person classes when they resume on Aug. 24. Academic support will be available through virtual consultations with staff specializing in student success to help undergraduate students navigate their continued academic progress if they must isolate because of COVID-19.
For students already on campus or arriving for various early-start programs throughout July, the University and the Protect Purdue Health Center are developing plans to rapidly sample and test individuals through a combination of resources provided by on-campus, local and outside partners.
The University will cover costs of all student testing. Purdue is expecting a potentially record number of freshmen this fall, with a student body of more than 40,000 total.
For more on this story, see Thursday’s Republic.
