Indiana University Health Bloomington Hospital is setting up an outdoor screening and testing site in preparation for accepting more COVID-19 patients, an official said Wednesday.

A yellow tent surrounded by yellow caution tape now stands just outside the hospital doors.

“In an effort to provide and protect our patients and team members, we have established a temporary structure as part of our COVID-19 screening area,” Katy Howe, the hospital’s director of emergency services, said in a statement.

“Given the structure is open to air, it helps to decrease the spread of this virus when collecting swabs for testing,” she said. “This will expedite our screening and potential testing of patients presenting to IU Health Bloomington Hospital Emergency Department. Our process is always improving and changing to better serve our patients and team.”

The statement reiterated that COVID-19 testing must be ordered by a physician.

Anyone concerned they might have symptoms should consult their own healthcare provider.

Additionally, IU has created a free virtual screening clinic application.

State health authorities have tested 3,356 people so far — a number that includes tests run by the state, the Centers For Disease Control And Prevention, and some private laboratories.

On Wednesday, the Indiana State Department of Health said that 477 people have now tested positive for the new coronavirus, marking the second day in a row that new confirmed cases have increased by more than a hundred. Wednesday's new state numbers showed one new case in Monroe County, bringing the county's reported case count to four.

It also announced that two more Hoosiers had died from COVID-19, bringing the total number of victims in Indiana to 14 since the outbreak began.