Individuals can collect a specimen at home or by drive-thru
Individuals can now purchase a test to diagnose COVID-19 online, without visiting a doctor’s office, through QuestDirect, the consumer-initiated testing business of Quest Diagnostics.
The QuestDirect COVID-19 Active Infection test can be purchased online with specimen collection available in two ways: at-home or at Walmart Neighborhood Market drive-thru pharmacy locations across the United States. The QuestDirect COVID-19 Active Infection test* is available online at QuestCOVID19.com.
“Accessible, high-quality COVID-19 diagnostic testing is essential to containing the spread of COVID-19,” said Jay Wohlgemuth, MD, senior vice president and Chief Medical Officer for Quest Diagnostics. “With our new QuestDirect COVID-19 Active Infection self-collection kit, anyone can access a high-quality COVID-19 test with access to interpretation and referral into care from a physician. Additionally, individuals can receive a self-collection kit either at home or at a nearby Walmart drive thru location, for the ultimate in speed, safety and convenience.”
The new test uses the gold standard of COVID-19 diagnostic testing – highly sensitive molecular diagnostic technologies that have received emergency use authorization from the FDA to aid the detection of the RNA of SARS-COV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. The test is appropriate for individuals who seek access to COVID-19 diagnostic testing, due to COVID-19-like symptoms or exposure to someone with COVID-19.
The kit includes a device for anterior nares (nasal) swab collection, a comparatively noninvasive specimen collection technique that involves inserting a swab into one nostril in the front of the nose.
After an individual purchases the test online, a licensed physician with an independent national network of physicians providing clinical oversight for QuestDirect services, will promptly review the order and, if deemed appropriate, order the test.
Unlike other consumer-initiated COVID-19 diagnostic tests, Quest provides two options for specimen collection:
- A specimen collection kit is mailed to the individual’s home. The individual may then submit the specimen in the kit via FedEx overnight to a Quest Diagnostics laboratory for testing.
- An individual may also opt to purchase the kit online and take it to one of more than 500 Walmart drive-thru pharmacy window locations in the United States for observed collection. At these Walmart locations, a trained pharmacist will observe the collection process and the specimen will be picked-up from a secure drop box and delivered to a Quest laboratory for testing.
Test results are available in an easy-to-read report on MyQuest, the company’s secure patient portal accessible on a smartphone, tablet, or desktop.
