COVID Q&A: Where are rapid tests available near Sacramento? What are latest daily case rates?
The spread of coronavirus is erupting again in California, as the highly contagious omicron variant of COVID-19 takes root, quickly driving the state into another steep winter surge.
Statewide test positivity, recorded Dec. 15 at 2.6%, more than quadrupled to 11.2% by Wednesday’s update from the California Department of Public Health for the highest rate measured since Jan. 19.
CDPH reports the number of patients hospitalized with confirmed COVID-19 has jumped 26%, from 3,781 to 4,759, in the three days since Christmas.
Some of the biggest increases in cases and hospitalizations have come in Southern California and the Bay Area, but both are also spiking in the Sacramento area. Sacramento County’s COVID-positive patient total has risen from 151 to 189 in the past week, according to CDPH.
Sacramento County’s daily case rate is up 50% in the past week, from 15.4 to 23.1 per 100,000 residents, according to a Wednesday update from the local health office. The true rate of residents being infected is likely much higher, with the numbers skewed by data reporting and testing delays due to the Christmas holiday.
“We know the Omicron variant is airborne and highly transmissible, and that a combination of colder weather, indoor gatherings and holiday-related household mixing would likely result in an increase in cases,” CDPH said in an emailed response to The Sacramento Bee. “That is why CDPH implemented an indoor masking requirement regardless of vaccination status through mid-January, recommended testing for travelers and required boosters for health care workers.”
The universal indoor mask requirement took effect Dec. 15 and is set to last through Jan. 15.
Here’s what to know about testing, isolation, vaccine boosters, anti-viral pills and more as the pandemic intensifies once again in the Sacramento region.
Where can I get a COVID-19 rapid test in the Sacramento area?
The Sacramento County public health office in a Tuesday update wrote that there is a “temporary shortage of COVID-19 antigen tests” at county-partnered test sites.
“Some sites may not have these tests available, but will have PCR tests,” the county wrote.
The next shipment of antigen tests is expected next Monday or Tuesday, county officials wrote.
The walk-up test site at Cal Expo, operated by Curative and open 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily, is closed for rapid testing through next Tuesday according to the Curative website. It remains open through this Thursday for PCR testing.
Similar shortages of rapid tests are being reported in neighboring counties and throughout most of California.
Hospital systems and health providers, such as Kaiser Permanente and Sutter Health in the Sacramento area, typically do not offer rapid antigen testing, instead using PCR tests for diagnoses.
What COVID resources are available at Cal Expo?
Cal Expo (Lot D at 1600 Exposition Blvd.) remains open for PCR testing but as of 9:30 a.m. was fully booked Wednesday. About 500 appointment slots remained open for Thursday, according to Curative.
The Cal Expo test site is closed this Friday and Saturday, on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day.
Can I buy an at-home coronavirus test?
At-home COVID-19 rapid tests can be purchased at retail pharmacies but may be very hard to come by, due to demand outstripping supply nationwide during the omicron surge.
Some local health offices are distributing free rapid tests, but those are also being snatched up very quickly.
Yuba County Health and Human Services, for instance, announced this Monday that BinaxNOW test kits would be distributed at six locations either Monday through Thursday or Monday through Friday, and at two more locations this Friday.
But five of the six sites that began to offer the kits Monday ran out of their weekly supply by 2 p.m. the first day.
The kits, each of which contain two rapid tests, were limited to one per adult. It’s not clear how many Yuba County officials distributed, but the county says it will give out more when its next shipment arrives.
Stanislaus County also distributed free rapid test kits this week.
Where do I find drive-thru testing near Sacramento?
Rite Aid and Walgreens locations across the Sacramento area are offering drive-thru PCR testing, but by appointment only. Appointments can be made through the pharmacy chains’ websites.
Participating Rite Aid stores
Appointment availability may vary by store.
Sacramento County:
▪ 5610 Stockton Blvd., Sacramento
▪ 1309 Fulton Ave., Sacramento
▪ 4241 Marconi Ave., Sacramento
▪ 4300 Elverta Road, Antelope
▪ 7211 Elk Grove Blvd., Elk Grove
▪ 6420 Rio Linda Blvd., Rio Linda
▪ 10570 Twin Cities Road, Galt
El Dorado County:
▪ 3101 Green Valley Road, Cameron Park
Placer County:
▪ 900 Sunrise Ave., Roseville
▪ 990 Pleasant Grove Blvd., Roseville
Yolo County:
▪ 2135 Cowell Blvd., Davis
▪ 295 West Main Street, Woodland
Yuba-Sutter:
▪ 1590 Butte House Road, Yuba City
▪ 5075 Olivehurst Ave., Olivehurst
▪ 1583 Highway 99, Gridley
Participating Walgreens stores
Appointment availability varies by store; the Walgreens website as of Wednesday morning showed “some” appointments available at most locations with “few” available at several in Sacramento and Elk Grove.
Sacramento County:
▪ 7155 24th St., Sacramento
▪ 4331 Antelope Rd., Sacramento
▪ 2201 Arden Way, Sacramento
▪ 4200 Arden Way, Sacramento
▪ 1401 Broadway, Sacramento
▪ 3521 Del Paso Rd., Sacramento
▪ 840 El Camino Ave., Sacramento
▪ 250 Florin Rd., Sacramento
▪ 1919 Fruitridge Rd., Sacramento
▪ 4495 Mack Rd., Sacramento
▪ 2900 Stockton Blvd., Sacramento
▪ 6325 Fair Oaks Blvd., Carmichael
▪ 6144 Dewey Dr., Citrus Heights
▪ 6199 Sunrise Blvd., Citrus Heights
▪ 7787 Sunrise Blvd., Citrus Heights
▪ 8400 Elk Grove-Florin Rd., Elk Grove
▪ 9200 Elk Grove-Florin Rd., Elk Grove
▪ 9180 Franklin Blvd., Elk Grove
▪ 7299 Laguna Blvd., Elk Grove
▪ 110 Riley St., Folsom
▪ 2595 East Bidwell St., Folsom
▪ 4050 Sunrise Blvd., Rancho Cordova
El Dorado County:
▪ 4014 Plaza Goldorado Circle, Cameron Park
▪ 8230 Saratoga Way, El Dorado Hills
▪ 4220 Missouri Flat Rd., Placerville
Placer County:
▪ 12120 New Airport Rd., Auburn
▪ 4051 Douglas Blvd., Granite Bay
▪ 700 Twelve Bridges Drive, Lincoln
▪ 2177 Sunset Blvd., Rocklin
▪ 1492 Blue Oaks Blvd, Roseville
▪ 3999 Foothills Blvd., Roseville
Yolo County:
▪ 1351 West Capitol Ave., West Sacramento
▪ 10 West Main St., Woodland
Yuba-Sutter:
▪ 855 Colusa Ave., Yuba City
▪ 1781 Colusa Highway, Yuba City
▪ 1640 Lincoln Rd., Yuba City
▪ 2293 River Oaks Blvd., Olivehurst
How do I make an appointment for a booster shot?
Booster dose appointments can be found via myturn.ca.gov, or can be made by patients through their usual health care providers, such as Kaiser Permanente, Sutter Health, UC Health or Mercy Medical Group.
Any California resident 16 or older who is at least six months beyond their second dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, or at least two months beyond the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine, is eligible for a booster.
Unlike rapid tests, booster doses remain in ample supply, according to state and local health officials.
Is there a COVID pill? When will it be available?
Two antiviral oral treatments for COVID-19 – one produced by Pfizer, called Paxlovid, and another by Merck, called molnupiravir – received authorization from the Food and Drug Administration last week.
Studies found Paxlovid can reduce the risk of severe illness by close to 90%, and Molnupiravir by about 30%.
The pills began distribution this week, but in “extremely limited” supply to one Sacramento-area county.
Local health officials announced Tuesday that Yolo County will soon receive an initial shipment of just 20 courses of Paxlovid and 140 of molnupiravir.
The pills are available by prescription only, which will require a positive PCR test for diagnosis, and should be administered within five days of symptom onset and while symptoms remain mild or moderate.
The Rite Aid store at 295 West Main St. in Woodland will carry both drugs, while Winters Healthcare will receive molnupiravir, Yolo officials said in a news release.
“In the coming weeks, shipments are expected to be larger and sent to additional pharmacies,” county health officials wrote.
“With the Omicron variant causing a rapid spread of COVID-19 cases in Yolo County, these new antiviral pills come at a critical time,” Yolo County health officer Dr. Aimee Sisson said in a prepared statement. “However, the limited quantities available initially mean they won’t be available to everyone who gets infected.
“These first doses will be prioritized for those at highest risk of severe disease.”
What are the latest CDC isolation and quarantine guidelines?
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Monday shortened its recommended isolation period for those who test positive for COVID-19 from 10 days to five days, if asymptomatic at the five-day mark.
The guidance calls for those who are infected to isolate for five days, and then to wear a mask at all times when around others for the next five days.
“The change is motivated by science demonstrating that the majority of SARS-CoV-2 transmission occurs early in the course of illness, generally in the 1-2 days prior to onset of symptoms and the 2-3 days after,” the CDC wrote in a statement.
As for quarantine for those exposed to COVID-19, those who are unvaccinated or due for a booster dose but not yet boosted are recommended to quarantine for five days “followed by strict mask use” for another five days.
Those exposed but who have received a booster do not need to quarantine, “but should wear a mask for 10 days after the exposure,” the CDC wrote.
“For all those exposed, best practice would also include a test for SARS-CoV-2 at day 5 after exposure. If symptoms occur, individuals should immediately quarantine until a negative test confirms symptoms are not attributable to COVID-19.”
The CDC says the difference in protocols for boosted vs. unboosted is due to the omicron variant. The agency cited data from South Africa and the United Kingdom showing that two doses of Pfizer or Moderna’s vaccines are about 35% effective against infection from omicron while a booster dose restores that effectiveness to about 75%.
This story was originally published December 29, 2021 at 11:09 AM.
