St. Luke’s Meridian Medical Center nurse Ashley Layton talks with a person before taking a swab sample at a drive-through screening station for COVID-19 in Meridian in March 2020.
St. Luke’s Meridian Medical Center nurse Ashley Layton talks with a person before taking a swab sample at a drive-through screening station for COVID-19 in Meridian in March 2020.
At-home COVID-19 tests are available in eastern Idaho, regional health officials announced this week.
Eastern Idaho Public Health has a supply of at-home, highly accurate PCCR tests called VAULT that are available without any cost to patients.
To use the test, people should call the health district at 208-533-3219 before picking up the test at a regional office. People can also request VAULT tests by calling the Idaho Careline at 2-1-1 and the test will be mailed to your home, the health district said in a news release.
Patients collect their own saliva with virtual help from a medical observer, the release said. Electronic results are usually available in two to three days.
The VAULT tests are available in the health district’s eight county offices, which span Bonneville, Clark, Custer, Fremont, Jefferson, Lemhi, Madison and Teton counties.
Besides at-home tests, regional medical providers offer several options for local COVID-19 testing.
Here’s a roundup of some testing sites in and around Idaho Falls and Blackfoot, based on searches from Get Tested COVID-19, a volunteer effort to collect information about COVID-19 testing sites nationwide; the federal Health Resources & Services Administration’s ”Find a Health Center” tool; and Walgreens’ testing search tool. This list may be incomplete.
— Mountain View Hospital at 2325 Coronado St. in Idaho Falls. The hospital accepts appointments. Call ahead at 208-528-1132 or visit mountainviewhospital.org/coronavirus-updates.
— Community Family Clinic at 2100 Alan St. in Idaho Falls is a federally qualified health center. It offers COVID-19 testing to patients who show symptoms. The clinic accepts appointments or drive-up patients. Call 208-528-7655.
— Bingham Memorial Hospital at 98 Poplar St. in Blackfoot. Call ahead at 208-785-4100 or visit binghammemorial.org.
— Ridley’s Pharmacy at 1295 Parkway Drive in Blackfoot. The pharmacy accepts appointments. Call ahead at 208-785-1311 or visit doineedacovid19test.com.
— Blackfoot Medical Center at 1441 Parkway Drive in Blackfoot. The center accepts walk-ins. Call 208-785-2600 or visit blackfootmedicalcenter.com.
Reporter Kyle Pfannenstiel can be reached at 208-542-6754. Follow him on Twitter: @pfannyyy. He is a corps member with Report for America, a national service program that places journalists into local newsrooms.
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