Sacramento International Airport gets COVID testing site. You don’t have to fly to use it
Sacramento International Airport now has COVID-19 testing for both passengers and the general public.
The appointment-only testing site opens today in the parking lot between AM-PM and the east economy lot — the former taxi waiting area.
City Health Urgent Care is administering the no-cost nasal swab tests. The PCR, or, polymerase chain reaction tests, allow for very small DNA samples to be amplified to a size large enough to be studied with more precision.
To get a test, book your appointment 48 hours in advance through the City Health website. Anyone with a valid travel itinerary will receive priority booking.
Expect a 48- to 72-hour turnaround once the sample reaches the lab.
Passengers can make their appointments through the site’s passenger portal, but you don’t have to fly to get a test. People who aren’t traveling can also schedule appointments via the site’s community portal.
Bring identification and confirmation of your appointment to the testing site.
Flying to Hawaii? Travelers must pay a $20 administration fee as part of Hawaii’s pre-travel testing program.
In October, Hawaii allowed visitors to the state to bypass its two-week quarantine with a negative COVID-19 test within three days of arrival. That same month, United Airlines became the first carrier to offer rapid and mail-in COVID-19 tests for its travelers on its Hawaii flights out of San Francisco International Airport.
Hawaiian Airlines quickly followed suit with its own preflight drive-thru testing offers at labs near SFO and Los Angeles International Airport. The carrier said it had plans to open additional sites.
Airport officials call the testing at Sacramento International “another level of health safety for those traveling through SMF and the Sacramento community.”
City Health also has a testing site at Oakland International Airport.
This story was originally published December 16, 2020 at 10:35 AM.
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