Antigen tests

[mgmigs]

Has anyone found a place that does antigen tests? Most CVS and Walgreens do not have antigen….. the rapid they offer is “naat”

[Straughn]

9 minutes ago, mgmigs said:

Has anyone found a place that does antigen tests? Most CVS and Walgreens do not have antigen….. the rapid they offer is “naat”

Where did you learn this? I just looked at the CVS site and the PCR is identified as PCR/Naat. I don’t see that on the antigen test. I have the antigen test scheduled for this coming Friday and if it is one Celebrity will not accept, that is going to be a problem for a lot of people on the August 8th cruise.

[3red7s]

Why not call them for verification.  I literally just booked ours this afternoon on the CVS MYCHART & the selection was marked " Rapid Result Test-Antigen"  we are in Cleveland OH 

[Ken the cruiser]

We're near Montgomery AL and found that a variety of "Urgent Care" medical offices in our area are offering them, but only through same day registration. We couldn't find any pharmacy in our area, to include CVS and Publix, that offered antigen tests. We're also going to call our family medical provider on Monday to see if they offer it, as we would much prefer that option. But at least we know there are urgent care providers in our area that provide same day antigen testing services.

 

Edited August 1, 2021 by Ken the cruiser

[Jim_Iain]

I've also been looking around.   I just Googled  "antigen test near me"  and most places near me give free Diagnostic PCR test but charge $99-149 for  the antigen test with results in 30 minutes. 

[floatplan]

CVS and Walgreens are Drive-Thru so require you to be tested while in a car. If you have flown into Fort Lauderdale that probably won't work. 

 

You can get a tested at FLL Terminal 3. You do need a ticket arriving or departing FLL. It's like $75 and they do not take insurance.

 

https://www.broward.org/Airport/passengers/Flights/advisories/pages/default.aspx

https://testing.nomihealth.com/easy_registration/34/onsite

 

Miami airport has similar  https://news.miami-airport.com/covid-19-testing-available-daily-at-mia-starting-may-21/

[markeb]

Depending on the location, Walgreens offers up to 3 different tests.

 

Their "Rapid Diagnostic Test" is the Abbott ID Now, which is neither a PCR nor an Antigen test. The specificity that Celebrity has used in their information makes it unclear whether that is an acceptable test, and probably no one answering the phone can answer that question. Results in less than 24 hours.

 

A "Diagnostic Lab Test", which is a laboratory-based PCR that's sent out to a reference lab and they state "Results time varies".

 

And a "Rapid Antigen Test", the BinaxNOW, that takes as little as an hour.

 

Doing a quick search near my location, surprisingly some locations do all 3, some appear to offer 2, and a number only collect specimens to send off for PCR.

 

The last I looked, CVS was similar, other than they don't offer the ID Now.

[mgmigs]

I am on phone with celebrity now, I asked for a supervisor by I am being told pcr is the only test they will accept…….  The closest antigen test available to be is in a different state. 

sup says for my sailing pcr or antigen needed. If we don’t get antigen in time for sailing we can’t get on ship

 

Edited August 1, 2021 by mgmigs

[TexSea]

A friend in San Antonio went to CVS today for a rapid antigen test. He said that the report does include the date and time the specimen was collected. Took about 45 minutes for a nurse practitioner to call with the results and post the results to his online record.  
 

I did a fake test booking and it wasn’t until I chose my location that it actually said it was a rapid antigen test.

[mgmigs]

41 minutes ago, Straughn said:

Where did you learn this? I just looked at the CVS site and the PCR is identified as PCR/Naat. I don’t see that on the antigen test. I have the antigen test scheduled for this coming Friday and if it is one Celebrity will not accept, that is going to be a problem for a lot of people on the August 8th cruise.

If you have an “antigen” test scheduled then you are good.  I don’t have any cvs or Walgreens that offer that 

[mgmigs]

I am going to call some of the walk in clinics tomorrow. I don’t see antigen available in any NYS cvs or walgreens

[mgmigs]

It looks like you can get an antigen test at ft lauderdale airport….that will be plan B if I can’t get one locally 

[Jim_Iain]

1 hour ago, mgmigs said:

Has anyone found a place that does antigen tests? Most CVS and Walgreens do not have antigen….. the rapid they offer is “naat”

I'm also curious of NAAT -   from the description below appears to be compliant.   I will have to check with Kaiser and Celebrity on this.  

 

I noticed that on my last tests at Kaiser the test results say  -

 

SARS-COV-2, NAA (COVID-19), SURVEILLANCE, PRE-OP  

 

When I looked up the FAQ on Kaiser Medical site it says -

 

Kaiser Permanente COVID testing methods involving viral genome amplification, also known as nucleic acid amplification testing (NAAT) (including RT-PCR), meet both Kaiser Permanente internal laboratory PCR sensitivity requirements and the requirements of the CDC Order signed January 25, 2021, with respect to viral testing. These tests meet requirements for domestic and international travel.

[markeb]

1 minute ago, Jim_Iain said:

I'm also curious of NAAT -   from the description below appears to be compliant.   I will have to check with Kaiser and Celebrity on this.  

 

I noticed that on my last tests at Kaiser the test results say  -

 

SARS-COV-2, NAA (COVID-19), SURVEILLANCE, PRE-OP  

 

When I looked up the FAQ on Kaiser Medical site it says -

 

Kaiser Permanente COVID testing methods involving viral genome amplification, also known as nucleic acid amplification testing (NAAT) (including RT-PCR), meet both Kaiser Permanente internal laboratory PCR sensitivity requirements and the requirements of the CDC Order signed January 25, 2021, with respect to viral testing. These tests meet requirements for domestic and international travel.

I’m going to suggest a little caution here. What Celebrity has said is PCR or rapid Antigen. All PCR tests are NAATs, but not all NAATs are PCR. The most obvious is the Abbot IDNow at Walgreens. If Celebrity actually means PCR (who knows?), the Walgreens rapid NAAT, the IDNow, wouldn’t count. 
 

They have chosen to use very specific terms that have specific meaning. I don’t know if that’s by intent. 

[Julma]

3

So, would this qualify??

 

 

Community Site Cvs 226 - Post Office Square Lane 3,

3 Post Office Square, Boston, MA 02109

Directions

Test type: Rapid-result test (PCR / NAAT)

Accepted for most travel and recreational purposes

Results within hours

This is a community testing site. Tests are performed at no cost, and insurance, Social Security number, and driver’s license/state ID are not needed. Vehicles are also not required.

[markeb]

2 minutes ago, Julma said:

 

3

So, would this qualify??

 

 

Community Site Cvs 226 - Post Office Square Lane 3,

3 Post Office Square, Boston, MA 02109

Directions

Test type: Rapid-result test (PCR / NAAT)

Accepted for most travel and recreational purposes

Results within hours

This is a community testing site. Tests are performed at no cost, and insurance, Social Security number, and driver’s license/state ID are not needed. Vehicles are also not required.

If it’s a PCR, it absolutely qualifies. And if that’s CVS, unless something has changed, they don’t offer the IDNow. 
 

This is as frustrating as it can get. You shouldn’t need to know the difference, but they are using terms with specific meanings, and the various sites are using terms that make medical sense but are different. And I understand the difference, but I can’t tell you if they mean what they’re saying!

[helen haywood]

Yikes!!  We’ll hope cruisers next weekend will tell us exactly what specific test they took that were acceptable.  Last thing I want is to drive two days to Florida only to find my rapid antigen test wasn’t the right one!!

[Ken the cruiser]

1 hour ago, mgmigs said:

I am on phone with celebrity now, I asked for a supervisor by I am being told pcr is the only test they will accept…….  The closest antigen test available to be is in a different state. 

sup says for my sailing pcr or antigen needed. If we don’t get antigen in time for sailing we can’t get on ship

 

Have you called your county health department to ask them where you can get a rapid antigen test? Ours was very helpful when I called.

Edited August 2, 2021 by Ken the cruiser

[Silkroad]

14 minutes ago, markeb said:

If it’s a PCR, it absolutely qualifies. And if that’s CVS, unless something has changed, they don’t offer the IDNow. 

Thanks for trying to clear this up for us because I'd hate to arrive at the port having had the wrong test!

 

I live in the DMV and I'd intended to go to CVS for their Rapid-result test (antigen) the day before my flight, as they promise results within hours. Are you saying you you don't believe this test meets Celebrity's requirements? Per the CVS web site, their PCR/NAAT test results are usually available in 1-2 days. It's that "usually" that concerns me.

[helen haywood]

Our county’s Urgent Care offers a rapid antigen test with results in 15 minutes.  Is there any possibility this test is not acceptable?  What other questions do I need to ask the facility?

[markeb]

8 minutes ago, Silkroad said:

Thanks for trying to clear this up for us because I'd hate to arrive at the port having had the wrong test!

 

I live in the DMV and I'd intended to go to CVS for their Rapid-result test (antigen) the day before my flight, as they promise results within hours. Are you saying you you don't believe this test meets Celebrity's requirements? Per the CVS web site, their PCR/NAAT test results are usually available in 1-2 days. It's that "usually" that concerns me.

 

The rapid result test (antigen) absolutely meets the requirement, as does the PCR. The only thing that is questionable is the IDNow, and that's Walgreens.

 

If that wasn't clear above, I wrote too much!

[markeb]

6 minutes ago, helen haywood said:

Our county’s Urgent Care offers a rapid antigen test with results in 15 minutes.  Is there any possibility this test is not acceptable?  What other questions do I need to ask the facility?

 

The only rapid test I'm concerned about is the IDNow as it's "none of the above". And Celebrity specified rapid antigen OR PCR. And my fear is that if you call, you're going to get that same answer from someone who doesn't know there's at least one third test type out there, and can't answer whether it's acceptable.

 

From what Celebrity has sent out so far, as of 9:00 pm EDT August 1st, and subject to change, a rapid antigen test is fine (and probably the easiest test to get in time, in most cases).

 

I believe posters have stated NCL has an agreement with one or more pharmacies to conduct tests and transmit results. At least if the pharmacy is conducting a test they've agree to perform for NCL, there should be no question about it being an acceptable test!

[Silkroad]

8 minutes ago, markeb said:

 

The rapid result test (antigen) absolutely meets the requirement, as does the PCR. The only thing that is questionable is the IDNow, and that's Walgreens.

 

If that wasn't clear above, I wrote too much!

Thank you! I definitely got the idea that a Walgreens test was questionable. Just wasn’t certain about the CVS antigen test. 

 

Edited August 2, 2021 by Silkroad

[gerelmx]

3 hours ago, mgmigs said:

Has anyone found a place that does antigen tests? Most CVS and Walgreens do not have antigen….. the rapid they offer is “naat”

 

https://fasttestnow.com/

 

[slhull54]

For US sailings departing as of August 6, 2021 through September 6, 2021, all guests over the age of two, regardless of vaccination status, will now be required to present a negative COVID-19 test result at the time of embarkation.  This test may be taken as either a PCR test or an Antigen test, conducted within 72 hours of embarkation.  Each guest is responsible for making their own arrangements with an accredited testing provider as well as all associated costs.