CVS opens 10 free COVID-19 test sites in Kansas, including 5 in Johnson County, KCK
CVS Health will open 10 COVID-19 testing sites on Friday at stores across Kansas — including five in Wyandotte and Johnson counties — as part of its nationwide campaign to stop the spread of the disease.
The company opened 22 drive-thru sites in Missouri last month. The list of new Kansas locations also includes Lawrence, Wichita, Leavenworth and Topeka.
Beginning Friday, patients can register in advance at CVS.com to schedule an appointment, which is required. Proof of Kansas residency is required, too.
You won’t go into the store, but sit in your car and administer the test — a nasal swab — yourself. A CVS pharmacy employee will watch to make sure you do it correctly.
The effort is part of a private-public partnership placing testing sites in hot spots across the country. Walgreens is also offering drive-thru testing as part of the campaign.
In April, CVS announced plans to set up 1,000 testing locations across the country by the end of May. The company says it has met that goal.
More than half of the CVS sites serve communities identified by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as most in need because of poverty, lack of access to transportation and crowded housing conditions, the company said.
People must meet the CDC’s current criteria for testing, which gives priority to people with symptoms, including a fever, cough, chills and loss of taste or smell. You will be screened for eligibility when you make the appointment. A doctor’s referral is not required.
Insurance is accepted, but if you don’t have insurance the test is paid for through a program funded by the Department of Health and Human Services. There should be no out-of-pocket expense, according to CVS.
The company says tests will be sent to an independent, third-party lab for processing and results will be available in about three days.
A list of all CVS Pharmacy drive-thru test sites can be found on the CVS site. Here are the new locations on the Kansas side of the metro:
▪ 950 Minnesota Ave., KCK
▪ 3750 State Ave., KCK
▪ 18351 W. 119th St., Olathe
▪ 11900 W. 135th St., Overland Park
▪ 22700 W. 55th Terrace, Shawnee
This story was originally published June 11, 2020 at 5:00 AM.
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