Free community testing for COVID-19 continues.

The Richmond and Henrico County health districts are offering testing at the following locations:

• Thursday, April 29, 2 to 4 p.m., Eastern Henrico Health Department, 1400 N. Laburnum Ave., Eastern Henrico. Drive-thru testing.

• Thursday, May 6, 2 to 4 p.m., Eastern Henrico Health Department, 1400 N. Laburnum Ave., Eastern Henrico. Drive-thru testing.

Appointments are encouraged by calling the Richmond and Henrico COVID-19 Hotline at (804) 205-3501 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, or by registering online at https://bit.ly/RHHDCOVID. Testing will be offered while test supplies last.

The Virginia Department of Health also has a list of COVID-19 testing locations around the state at www.vdh.virginia.gov/coronavirus/covid-19-testing/covid-19-testing-sites/.

Want a COVID-19 vaccine?

Call the Richmond and Henrico Health Districts’ COVID-19 hotline — (804) 205-3501 — from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday to schedule a vaccine appointment.

Or contact the statewide COVID-19 Vaccination Pre- Registration System at vaccinate.virginia.gov or by calling 877- VAX-IN-VA, or (877) 829-4682.

The statewide call center is open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. seven days a week to help people pre-register by phone or to answer questions about the vaccine. The call center has English- and Spanish-speaking agents and a call-back service to help people in more than 100 other languages.

Additionally, TTY service is available to help people who are deaf or hard of hearing.

VaccineFinder.org also allows people to find nearby pharmacies and clinics that offer the COVID-19 vaccine

For more information: vax.rchd.com.

The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention eased its guidelines Tuesday on the wearing of masks outdoors.

As a result of the continuing progress of vaccinations in the nation, the CDC announced that fully vaccinated people don’t need to cover their faces outdoors anymore unless they are in a big crowd of strangers. And those who are unvaccinated can go outside without masks in some situations as well.

The change comes as more than half of U.S. adults – about 140 million people – have received at least one dose of the vaccine.

The CDC said that people – vaccinated or not – do not have to wear masks outdoors when they walk, bike or run alone or with members of their household. They also can go maskless in small outdoor gatherings with fully vaccinated people.

But, the guidelines continued, unvaccinated people – defined as those who haven’t received both doses of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines or the one-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine – should wear masks at small outdoor gatherings that include other unvaccinated people. They also should keep their faces covered when dining at outdoor restaurants with friends from multiple households.

The CDC also said that all people – vaccinated or not – should keep wearing masks at crowded outdoor events such as concerts or sporting events. It also recommends masks at indoor public spaces such as restaurants, hair salons, shopping centers, museums, movie theaters and gyms.

Federal health officials also lifted the pause on the Johnson & Johnson vaccine on April 23, allowing the single-dose shots to resume. Scientific advisers decided that the vaccine’s benefits outweigh a rare risk of blood clots that have caused three deaths and several hospitalizations, mostly among women under age 50.

In Virginia, 43.5 percent of the population has received at least one dose of the vaccine, according to state health department figures released Wednesday. The data show that 6 million total doses have been administered in the state, with 2.5 million people, or 29.4 percent of the population, now fully vaccinated.

With the opening last week of vaccines to anyone age 16 and older, another 3 million people are eligible for inoculation, Virginia officials said.

Health officials have continued to stress the need to follow safety guidelines and precautions even as more people become vaccinated because the number of COVID-19 cases continues to rise, particularly among younger age groups and children.

State officials reported 657,154 cases of COVID-19 statewide on Wednesday, along with 28,271 hospitalizations and 10,735 deaths. Virginia’s seven-day positivity rate is 5.7 percent. Last week, it was 6 percent.

According to state data, African-Americans comprised 22.2 percent of cases statewide and 24.9 percent of deaths for which ethnic and racial data is available, while Latinos made up 16.3 percent of cases and 6.4 percent of deaths.

As of Wednesday, Richmond reported a total of 16,717 positive cases, 788 hospitalizations and 257 deaths; Henrico County, 24,890 cases, 1,030 hospitalizations and 600 deaths; Chesterfield County, 27,080 cases, 927 hospitalizations and 416 deaths; and Hanover County, 7,965 cases, 280 hospitalizations and 152 deaths.