 Pima County to host FEMA high-capacity COVID testing center at PCC West Campus
UPDATED: This version corrects the link to the pre-registration site listed in the fifth paragraph.
PIMA COUNTY, Jan. 21, 2022 – At the request of the Pima County Health Department, the Federal Emergency Management Agency Region 9 will fund a drive-through COVID-19 testing site at the Pima Community College West Campus, 2202 W. Anklam Road, starting Monday, Jan. 24. Site hours are Monday through Saturday, 8 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Staff at the site, which is expected to administer 1,000 to 2,000 tests per day, will conduct self-swab PCR (polymerase chain reaction) tests and provide results to recipients within approximately 48 hours. The Pima College site is the only drive-through site sponsored by the Health Department.
The County will conduct a “soft launch” of the site Saturday, Jan. 22, with first appointments available at 11 a.m. Up to 1,000 appointments are available on Jan. 22. When the site fully opens on Jan. 24, up to 2,000 appointments will be available.
Vehicles will enter from Anklam Road. The site is also on a Sun Tran bus line. As part of the COVID-19 safety precautions, Sun Tran, Sun Link and Sun Express are currently fare free.
Clinical services provider eTrueNorth will conduct the testing. Tests will be free and available to everyone. ID will not be required. Pre-registration is strongly encouraged, though participants may register the day of testing, provided appointments are available on the platform. Be sure to bring your voucher confirming your appointment to the site.
“The Omicron surge and federal messaging about the availability and utility of rapid antigen testing are again creating increased demand that is not easily accommodated by the existing local COVID-19 testing capacity,” said Acting County Administrator Jan Lesher in a Jan. 12 memo to the Board of Supervisors. “For this reason, the community is again looking to Pima County to provide low-barrier, no cost testing.”
The expanded availability of free testing reflects the Health Department’s commitment to equity in its efforts to protect residents and visitors from COVID-19. To date, the department estimates that 2.5 million tests have been performed by Pima County and its clinical partners.
“Since the beginning of the pandemic, our focus has been keeping our students, employees and community healthy,” Pima Community College Chancellor Lee D. Lambert said. “We are proud that our ongoing partnership with the Pima County Health Department will bring trusted, high-quality COVID testing to our community.”
The new site will add to the comprehensive array of testing services already provided by the Health Department and its partners. These include PCR and rapid antigen options at a number of free testing centers in Tucson, as well as mobile testing events scheduled at locations throughout the county, including rural and hard-to-reach places such as Arivaca and Robles Ranch.
The County also has worked with FEMA with the support of the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) to offer monoclonal antibody treatment (mAB) at the Carondelet Medical Group facilities at St. Joseph's and St. Mary’s hospitals. The treatment, which is authorized by the FDA under Emergency Use Authorization (EUA), also is offered at several other locations in the County.
The mAB therapy offered at St. Mary’s and St. Joseph’s is available by physician referral only. Visit Pima County’s COVID-19 treatment webpage for details on locations, hours and the referral process.
FEMA also contributed to Pima County’s vaccination efforts by providing mobile vaccination units in Spring 2021, including a location at PCC West. Pima County has partnered with PCC on other vaccination clinics.
"We will continue to work with our partners in federal and state government, as well as valued community partners like Pima Community College, to ensure that anyone in Pima County who needs a test can get one,” said Pima County Health Department Director Dr. Theresa Cullen.
MEDIA CONTACT: healthcommunications@pima.gov
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