BUFFALO, N.Y. — Testing is more widely available in Western New York than it was one week ago.
2 On Your Side’s Kelly Dudzik contacted a bunch of health care providers Friday to find out where you can get tested if you think you have COVID-19 or where you can get the antibody test.
A spokesperson for Wegmans told 2 On Your Side that although the state did antibody testing at some locations earlier this month, she is not aware of any future testing at Wegmans locations.
Anyone showing symptoms can get tested for COVID-19 at an Erie County Public Health lab. You do not need a doctor's prescription.
The county is also working with Kaleida to schedule appointments. You can take a COVID-19 assessment on Kaleida's website. If you do have a primary care provider, you may be scheduled through Kaleida.
Call (716) 858-2929 to schedule an appointment with Erie County for COVID-19 testing.
The Erie County Department of Health is not offering antibody testing.
WellNow Urgent Care is. You can get an antibody test or the COVID-19 test at twelve locations across Western New York. Tests are available seven days a week, and no appointment is needed. You can sign-up online ahead of time to reserve your place in line.
"Depending on whether you're registered in your car, or whether you come right in and get registered, you'll then be brought back in a room, your vital signs, and everything, your initial screening will be taken. A provider will then assess you, and then we offer the two different types of tests. We can do the PCR, which is a nasal swab, and nasal pharyngeal swab, or the antibody tests, will be an actual blood draw. Both of those will be actually sent out, and there's a 24 to 36-hour turnaround time for us to receive those results," WellNow Physician Assistant Christa Warthling said.
You should wear a mask, but if you don't have one, WellNow will give one to you.
"Do you get your results online? Do you log into your account? Do you get them that way? Or does somebody call you?" Dudzik asked.
"We will be calling back our patients to get the results in person," Warthling said.
"And the blood test, is it a finger prick? Or is it something like the arm thing when ... " Dudzik asked.
"You have an actual venipuncture. It will be actual venipuncture lab test," Warthling said.
In addition to offering drive-thru COVID-19 testing, Quest Diagnostics is now doing antibody testing. The antibody test is available at more than 2,000 Quest locations nationwide.
You need to have your doctor sign-off on it, be asymptomatic for at least 10 days, not have a fever, and be wearing a face mask.
