SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO.com) — There will be mass testing for COVID-19 at every nursing home and assisted living facility in South Dakota.

It’s a large undertaking says State Health Secretary Kim Malsam-Rysdon.

She says the goal is to test all residents and all staff at the targeted facilities over the coming weeks, although no one will be forced to take a test.

These facilities are especially vulnerable to COVID-19. For example, there have been many deaths at the Good Samaritan Society’s Sioux Falls Village.

The mass testing is a collaboration between the state health lab, commercial test labs, and local healthcare facilities. Malsam-Rysdon says the state will be paying for the tests and the processing.