Rite Aid opens coronavirus testing to all, including at Monroeville location

Rite Aid is expanding its covid-19 testing.

Starting Thursday, all of the national pharmacy’s testing sites will be available to anyone, including those who are not displaying coronavirus symptoms, per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance.

Patients will need to provide a government-issued identification, be at least 18 years old and pre-register on Rite Aid’s website. Testing sites use a self-swab nasal test overseen by Rite Aid pharmacists.

Appointments can be made at the new sites beginning May 10. To make an appointment click here.

Currently, there are six Rite Aid covid-19 testing sites in Pennsylvania, — including the 4111 William Penn Highway site in Monroeville.

On May 11, Rite Aid is adding 46 new, no-charge testing sites, bringing the total sites up to 71 in 12 states. Pennsylvania will have 15 sites. For a complete list, click here.

The expansion will allow the pharmacy to conduct up to 10,000 tests every day across all locations. The expansion is made possible through a partnership with the federal Department of Health and Human Services, according to a Rite Aid news release.

Parking lot sites are open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day. For sites conducting tests through the stores’ drive-thru windows, the hours are 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday to Friday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

The pharmacy initially only offered self-swab testing to people meeting criteria established by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which includes people with symptoms such as a fever, shortness of breath and worsening cough. The CDC calls for prioritizing testing for health care professionals, people over age 65 and those with underlying health conditions.

Rite Aid has used Google offshoot Verily’s “Baseline covid-19 Program” for screening, scheduling and returning test results to patients.

Test results, therefore, are returned to patients through email addresses provided when registering for an appointment online.

New Jersey-based BioReference Laboratories process the swabs, “with the goal of flattening the curve through accessible diagnostic testing,” a Rite Aid official said in a statement.

PWNHealth, a national clinician network, provides clinical oversight and support.