Harrisburg, PA - The Department of Health announced today that beginning Wednesday, August 5, various Walmart locations across the state will begin providing drive-thru testing for residents living in areas where there is a need for testing sites.
“We appreciate the hard work done by health systems, pharmacies, Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), medical clinics and other entities that are providing testing for COVID-19 across Pennsylvania,” Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine said. “When we established our testing strategy, we wanted testing to be accessible, available and adaptable and we are working to meet that challenge. Anyone who believes they are in need of a COVID-19 test and meet testing criteria can get tested today in Pennsylvania.”
Nine new drive-thru testing sites will launch on August 5. There is no testing in stores. These sites will be open weekly to test up to 50 registered patients. Registration is required one day in advance. The following drive-thru testing sites will be open Monday-Friday from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM starting Wednesday, August 5th:
Walmart Supercenter pharmacy drive-thru, 355 Walmart Drive, Uniontown, PA
Walmart Supercenter pharmacy drive-thru, 2601 Macarthur Rd Relocation, Whitehall, PA
Walmart Supercenter pharmacy drive-thru, 2010 Village Center Dr, Tarentum, PA
Walmart Supercenter pharmacy drive-thru, 134 Daniel Kendall, West Brownsville, PA
The following drive-thru testing sites will be open Monday, Wednesday, Friday from 7:00 AM to 9:00 AM starting Wednesday, August 5th:
Walmart Supercenter parking lot, 20245 Route 19, Cranberry Township, PA
Walmart Supercenter parking lot, 200 Kocher Lane, Elizabethville, PA
Walmart Supercenter parking lot, 50 Newberry Parkway, Etters, PA
Walmart Supercenter parking lot, 1355 E Lehman St, Lebanon, PA
Walmart Supercenter parking lot, 100 Chippewa Town Center, Beaver Falls, PA
These nine new sites are in addition to existing Walmart drive-thru sites in Clarion, State College, New Castle and Edinboro. The most updated testing sites and information is available on the Department of Health’s website.
“As the pandemic continues, it is imperative that we shift testing sites to communities with increasing demand. If the need for testing in additional communities arises, we will re-evaluate our site locations,” said Secretary Dr. Levine.
After testing, residents are required to return home and self-isolate. If your symptoms worsen while you are waiting for your test results, talk to your doctor. If you experience a medical emergency, please seek immediate care.
The Department of Health is partnering with Quest Diagnostics to process the tests. At this time, the tests are being provided at no cost to Pennsylvanians. Patients will create an account on Quest’s patient portal and answer some eligibility questions to determine if they meet the criteria to get tested.
Once a patient is registered, they will be notified of a testing location within a 50-mile radius of them with available appointment times. The patient will schedule an appointment time, print a voucher and bring the voucher to the location with them to their appointment. Patients will be notified of their test results via email. The average turnaround time for patients to receive their test results is seven or more days. Physicians will call any patient who has a positive test result.
Through the work of a number of entities, testing is accessible for Pennsylvanians. As entities such as Rite Aid, CVS, Patient First, Walgreens, Walmart in partnership with Quest and others offer testing for symptomatic and also asymptomatic individuals, it has further allowed for Pennsylvanians to get tested close to home. Add these locations to those already offered by hospitals, health systems, FQHCs, health clinics and other locations, and it has expanded the testing network in the state.
With increased testing supplies through state and federal partners and Pennsylvania businesses, testing has become more available in Pennsylvania. This has helped ensure that the swabs and medium is available to conduct testing, and to also rollout universal testing at long-term care facilities.
The department’s testing plan has also remained adaptable. This includes the efforts to ensure everyone in a long-term care facility can be tested, work to ensure counties that currently do not have testing locations can receive them, and other efforts based on the latest data and science surrounding COVID-19.
Symptoms of COVID-19 can include:
Fever
Cough
Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
Diarrhea
Chills
Repeating shaking with chills
Muscle pain
Headache
Sore throat
New loss of taste or smell
Symptoms may appear in as few as two days or as long as 14 days after exposure. Reported illnesses have ranged from people with little to no symptoms to people being severely ill and dying.
For the updated Commonwealth map of testing sites, visit Pennsylvania COVID-19 Viral Testing Sites.
MEDIA CONTACT: Nate Wardle - 717-787-1783
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