PHOENIX — The Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS), the Arizona Department of Emergency and Military Affairs (DEMA), and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) continue to provide free diagnostic testing in Maryvale and South Phoenix. The federal strike team, working with ADHS, DEMA, and Phoenix Incident Command on logistics, have launched two testing sites that will continue to provide free diagnostic testing for COVID-19 through Tuesday, July 28 in these high-need, underserved communities.
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With both sites operating throughout the weekend, there have been minimal wait times and plenty of available appointments. Through this partnership, HHS has committed up to 5,000 tests per day – 2,500 at each site – to serve up to 60,000 Arizonans. As of Monday morning, only 4,545 of the 15,000 available tests since Friday have been used.
The testing began on Friday, July 17, and will continue for a total of twelve days at South Mountain Park, 10919 S. Central Avenue, Phoenix, AZ 85042, and Maryvale High School, 3415 N 59th Ave, Phoenix, AZ 85033. Information on pre-registration for the testing sites is available at azhealth.gov/SurgeTesting. To ensure an appointment, participants are encouraged to pre-register. This test involves a self-administered nasal swab in a drive-thru stall. Those tested will receive five cloth face coverings. Results will be available within 24-48 hours from the time specimens arrive at the lab. The tested individual will receive the results through an online portal.
“The free testing offered at our surge testing sites is available to all Arizonans, whether or not you live in these areas,” said Governor Ducey. “We encourage anyone who wants to get tested for COVID-19 to take advantage of this opportunity.”
“We have worked to increase access to testing to highly impacted areas of the state,” said Dr. Cara Christ, ADHS director. “Over the last several weeks, we have seen high demand and extended wait times for testing. Addition of these new free testing sites has helped meet this demand, with much shorter wait times and significant appointment availability for people who need to be tested. We appreciate the help from our federal, state, and local partners to increase access to testing.”