DEERFIELD, Ill., April 07, 2020 - Furthering its commitment to provide greater access to COVID-19 testing and community resources, Walgreens is working to expand drive-thru testing to 15 new sites in seven states, the company announced today. The states included are Arizona, Florida, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Tennessee and Texas. The expansion is a next step building on Walgreens’ collaboration with the Administration, federal health agencies, and state and local authorities.

The new testing sites will utilize Abbott’s new ID NOW COVID-19 test, which delivers positive results in as little as five minutes and negative results within 13 minutes.

The 15 locations are being finalized in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and are planned for select hot spot markets with escalating rates of COVID-19 cases. Walgreens plans to be able to test up to 3,000 people per day across these additional sites, which are expected to be activated beginning later this week.

“Walgreens remains committed to working with federal, state and local governments, as well as industry partners to meet the needs of the communities we serve across the country during the pandemic,” said Richard Ashworth, Walgreens president. “We’re continuing to do everything we can, both with our own resources and also by partnering with others, to serve as an access point within the community for COVID-19 testing. Opening our first drive-thru testing location last month has allowed us to quickly learn and develop an efficient and scalable process, and we’re pleased to be working with Abbott to help accelerate our efforts, and to enable quick results for those being tested.”

Walgreens will dedicate temporary space at select locations, outside of the stores, where Walgreens pharmacists will oversee the self-administration of the COVID-19 test. Soon, patients will be directed to testing locations via an online assessment tool that will be available on Walgreens.com and Walgreens mobile app.

Testing will be available at no cost to eligible individuals who meet criteria established by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Patients will need to pre-register in advance in order to schedule an appointment for testing.

About Walgreens

Walgreens (walgreens.com), one of the nation's largest drugstore chains, is included in the Retail Pharmacy USA Division of Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (Nasdaq: WBA), a global leader in retail and wholesale pharmacy. Walgreens is proud to be a neighborhood health, beauty and retail destination supporting communities across the country, and was named to FORTUNE* magazine’s 2019 Companies that Change the World list. Approximately 8 million customers interact with Walgreens in stores and online each day. As of August 31, 2019, Walgreens operates 9,277 drugstores with a presence in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, along with its omnichannel business, Walgreens.com. Walgreens also provides specialty pharmacy and mail services and offers in-store clinics and other health care services throughout the United States, most of which are operated by our health care strategic partners.

*© 2019, Fortune Media IP Limited. Used under license.

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