Guelph pharmacies will not yet be offering tests for COVID-19 just yet.
This comes after the provincial government announced 60 pharmacies across Ontario will start COVID testing on Friday.
According to the province, pharmacies located in Toronto, the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), Ottawa and the Greater Ottawa Region have been selected for testing. Pharmacies in Huntsville and Weston were also chosen to administer tests.
Pharmacies have the option of providing testing to those with no visible symptoms of COVID-19, to help manage backlog by expanding testing beyond 150 assessment sites across the province. Premier Doug Ford says pharmacies will also help the province reach its goal of 50,000 COVID tests a day.
"I have to thank Shoppers Drug Mart, Rexall, and the independent pharmacies who have stepped up in a big way to help expand testing to more people in the province.” says Premier Ford in the release.
To receive a COVID-19 test from a pharmacy, residents will have to book an appointment and follow public health safety protocols while attending the pharmacy.
The decision to expand COVID-19 testing to pharmacies is part of Ontario’s plan called ‘Keeping Ontarians Safe: Preparing For Future Waves of COVID-19.’
The province says this plan will help protect communities by quickly identifying, preventing and responding to COVID situations. Steps within this plan include expanded case and contact management, along with a campaign to encourage flu immunization.
"With a recent increase in the number of cases, we are making sure people have more options for testing to identify cases of COVID-19 early.” says Elliott in the release.
More details about the plan will be released later this week.
Besides pharmacy testing, saliva testing will be used in Ontario to assess for COVID-19. Saliva testing will start in the upcoming weeks at the Women's College, Mount Sinai and University Health Network―Toronto Western Hospital assessment centres.
