Tri-Cities COVID testing: New free drive-thru options at Rite Aid and pop-up sites

Options for getting tested for COVID-19 are expanding in the Tri-Cities.

In addition to drive-thru testing at the Toyota Center in Kennewick and the HAPO Center, formerly TRAC, in Pasco, drug store and pop-up testing sites are being added.

The additional sites expand the hours drive-up testing is available to include evenings and weekends and also brings testing to small communities in Benton and Franklin counties.

The testing offered is to determine whether a person has a current case of COVID-19, rather than if they have antibodies from a previous exposure and illness due to the coronavirus.

Here are options for COVID-19 testing, in addition to testing being offered at clinics and through hospitals:

▪ Rite-Aid is working in partnership with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to offer free drive-thru testing at two of its Tri-Cities stores starting Thursday, July 16.

Drive-thru testing will be offered at its stores at 101 North Ely St., Kennewick, and at 215 N. Fourth Ave., Pasco, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. weekdays and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekends.

Pharmacists will oversee self-swab nasal tests for people at least 18 years old.

Preregistration to make an appointment for the testing is required at www.riteaid.com.

Test results usually are available in two to seven days, but participants are warned that the current volume of test processing is delaying some results.

▪ Pop-up testing starting this week as a new service coordinated by the Benton Franklin Health District working through with the Washington state Department of Health.

Its goal is to bring testing to communities where testing may not be readily available.

Wednesday testing was offered at Basin City Elementary School in Mesa.

Thursday the pop-up testing moved to Pioneer Park in Connell, with hours of 1 to 7 p.m.

The local health district is announcing the daily sites of the pop-up testing on Facebook and Twitter.

No appointment is required and testing is free.

People are asked to bring an insurance card if they have one, but no one will be turned away for lack of insurance.

Those with positive test results will be contacted by phone in two to four days.

▪ Drive-thru testing by the Washington National Guard in cooperation with the local health district is available Tuesdays through Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Toyota Center and HAPO Center.

On busy days, the two sites may stop letting vehicles get in line at noon to make sure they have time to test everyone and package test samples for shipment for everyone who is in line that day.

Testing is free, but those who have an insurance card should bring it. No one will be turned away for lack of insurance.

No appointment is needed.

This story was originally published July 15, 2020 at 5:39 PM.