(CVS Health)
Building on the company’s comprehensive efforts to help slow the spread of the virus, on Friday, May 22 CVS Health (NYSE: CVS) will open 14 new COVID-19 test sites at select CVS Pharmacy drive-thru locations across California. The opening of additional test sites across the state and country will be announced by the end of the month.
These new sites will utilize self-swab tests and mark the next phase of the company’s nationwide COVID-19 testing strategy, announced April 27. CVS Health expects to have up to 1,000 locations across the country offering this service by the end of May, with the goal of processing up to 1.5 million tests per month, subject to availability of supplies and lab capacity. The 14 test sites in California are part of nearly 350 locations across 14 states including Arizona, California, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Texas.
“While the large-scale test sites we’ve been operating since early April have proven successful, this new approach allows us to utilize our presence in communities across the country and bring testing closer to home,” said Larry J. Merlo, President and CEO, CVS Health. “Our frontline employees will continue to play a critical role in the testing process, with members of their communities directly benefiting from their dedication and selflessness.”
A patient administers a self-swab COVID-19 test at a CVS Pharmacy drive-thru testing site, one of a thousand locations the company plans to operate around the country by the end of May. Photo Courtesy CVS Health
Once fully operational, more than half of the company’s 1,000 test sites will serve communities with the greatest need for support, as measured by the CDC‘s Social Vulnerability Index. The index tracks a variety of census variables including poverty, lack of access to transportation, and crowded housing that may weaken a community’s ability to prepare for and recover from hazardous events like natural disasters and disease outbreaks.
Self-swab tests will be available to individuals meeting Centers for Disease Control and Prevention criteria, in addition to age guidelines. Patients must register in advance at CVS.com beginning Friday, May 22 to schedule an appointment. Patients will be required to stay in their cars and directed to the pharmacy drive-thru window where they will be provided with a test kit and given instructions, and a CVS Pharmacy team member will observe the self swab process to ensure it is done properly. Tests will be sent to an independent, third-party lab for processing and the results will be available in approximately three days.
Testing will not take place inside any retail locations, and CVS Pharmacy, HealthHUB and MinuteClinic will continue to serve customers and patients.
A patient completes a self-swab COVID-19 test at a CVS Pharmacy drive-thru testing site, one of a thousand locations the company plans to operate around the country by the end of May. Photo Courtesy CVS Health 
A new COVID-19 testing site at a CVS Pharmacy drive-thru location, part of the company’s plan to have up to 1,000 testing sites operational across the country by the end of May.
The new testing sites in California include:
CVS Pharmacy, 7740 Rancho Santa Fe Road, Carlsbad, CA 92009
CVS Pharmacy, 16 3rd Avenue Extension, Chula Vista, CA 91910
CVS Pharmacy, 645 East Palomar Street, Chula Vista, CA 91911
CVS Pharmacy, 1150 Baker Street, Costa Mesa, CA 92626
CVS Pharmacy, 14220 Schleisman Road, Eastvale, CA 92880
CVS Pharmacy, 1299 Broadway, El Cajon, CA 92021
CVS Pharmacy, 572 Fletcher Parkway, El Cajon, CA 92020
CVS Pharmacy, 8101 Greenback Lane, Fair Oaks, CA 95627
CVS Pharmacy, 491 East Alessandro Boulevard, Riverside, CA 92508
CVS Pharmacy, 921 Pacific Coast Highway, Seal Beach, CA 90740
CVS Pharmacy, 1350 Florin Road, Sacramento, CA 95831
CVS Pharmacy, 14589 Camino Del Norte, San Diego, CA 92128
CVS Pharmacy, 3350 Palm Avenue, San Diego, CA 92154
CVS Pharmacy, 18080 Imperial Highway, Yorba Linda, CA 92886
Find your latest news here at the Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle
Search: CVS Health