Walgreens, a leading drug store chain in the United States recently announced plans to open 15 drive-thru facilities for coronavirus COVID-19 testing in seven states.

With mounting cases of COVID-19 and the respiratory illness it is causing, Walgreens had decided to make the service available in areas with maximum number of cases. The drugstore chain announced 7 states for testing that include Arizona, Illinois, Florida, Kentucky, Tennessee, Texas and Louisiana.

According to the company, the exact locations are still being worked out in association with the U.S. Department of HHS (Health & Human Services). Widespread testing for coronavirus has been hampered by a shortage of test kits, and the announcement from Walgreens comes nearly a month after the American President announced that the company and three others: Target, Walmart and CVS Health, will be offering drive-thru tests for coronavirus in store parking lots. 

However, introduction of these services has been going slow as the retailers were struggling along with hospitals and other organizations to get sufficient number of protective gears for those at the forefront of testing. Rite Aid is leading a testing site in Philadelphia, while Walmart has 2 testing sites operational in the Chicago area.

As per sources close to the matter, the testing units will be outside stores. Pharmacists at Walgreens will assist as people self-administer the Abbott Laboratory coronavirus test, with negative results coming within 13 minutes and positive results will take as less as five minutes. Last month, Walgreens started a drive-thru testing site in the Chicago area, however limited its testing to first responders. 

Richard Ashworth, President at Walgreens, said in the statement that initiating first drive-thru testing location last month has positioned them to quickly learn and develop a scalable and efficient process, and Walgreens is pleased to be working with Abbott to aid in accelerating efforts to enable quickest possible results for those being tested.

Source Credits: https://www.cbsnews.com/amp/news/walgreens-coronavirus-testing-in-seven-states/#