DO NOT GO THERE FOR TESTING. So I went for a Covid PCR test today. I watched the video sent to my phone and followed the directions. Upon my arrival at the drive-thru, I check in and gave the pharmacy technician my ID, insurance card, and the email with my confirmation number on it. I get the test in a paper bag, the vial and swab is in a double sided plastic bag with several pieces of paper inside. I thought the paper would be further instructions but was general information about Covid. A large poster is hanging on the drive through window with the same instructions the video gave - swap both nostrils for 15 seconds, place swap into vial into the plastic bag, zip it close and place into the medical bin, and wipe the bin lid with the provided wipe. Well....since the procedure was not supervised in any way by the pharmacy technician, I got to the swabbing part and managed to get the vial open but the swab is bigger than the vial...so...now what? I start asking for help and it took a bit before the technician came back to the window and all she did was make a motion to break the swab, never said a word. Now, I am not a medical technician...how the heck would I know this is okay to do, needless to say the swab was not easy to break off. So now I try to put the cap back on the vial and it did not go on easily on the first try, still not entirely sure it was on correct. When I placed it into the plastic bag, it occurred to me to ask the pharmacy technician if my confirmation information should be included in the plastic bag, she nodded 'yes'. Good thing I asked. Then I tried to zip lock the plastic bag closed but needless to say it didn't zip! I tried several times and thought I got it but not entirely sure if it closed properly. I then placed the bag into the medical bin....and guess what...the bin is full. So I had to cram my sample into the bin on its side. So...let us hope that a) my sample vial is sorta closed enough and b) the zip lock bag is sorta closed, if not, there will be a mess in the stuffed bin. Now, I am suppose to wipe the cover of the bin per their instructions; well...they did not provide a wipe so I guess that step isn't important.
I have come to the conclusion that CVS dispensing of any tests or distribution of vaccine is only a money grab for them. In my opinion, they are not qualified to handle such an important procedure. They don't even supervise or offer help. New York State did a better job with testing and testing at CVS joke. read more