Covid testing

[AspenRed]

Hello! I was wondering if anyone has gotten their COVID testing done at Med Express or any other urgent care place. They do the rapid antigen test for traveling. Appointments are walk-in. I was thinking of using Med Express because there doesn’t seem to be much testing at Walgreens or CVS in my area. 

[Sunshine3601]

Not familiar with med express but others on here have had no problem with urgent care tests as long as you get a email / print out that shows all the info needed.

 

[Intent2smile]

I have never used them but I would call them with the guidelines from Royal and make sure that their results meet all of the requirements especially the CLIA Cert number being on the results.  We heard someone on May 1st on our cruise that had to get tested again because the CLIA was not on their results

[AspenRed]

Thanks for the information. I will check with Royal Caribbean.

[AspenRed]

1 hour ago, Sunshine3601 said:

Not familiar with med express but others on here have had no problem with urgent care tests as long as you get a email / print out that shows all the info needed.

 

When I talked to Med Express they said I would get a printout.

[iuki]

2 hours ago, AspenRed said:

When I talked to Med Express they said I would get a printout.

I just read that iHealth was no longer taking appointments for proctor testing, which is what we were planning.  Could you please explain Med Express to me.  We received the iHealth kits from the post office.

 

Thank you.

[BirdTravels]

23 minutes ago, iuki said:

I just read that iHealth was no longer taking appointments for proctor testing, which is what we were planning.  Could you please explain Med Express to me.  We received the iHealth kits from the post office.

 

Thank you.

 

We use the Royal Caribbean recommended testing partner eMed home proctored test. Used it for multiple cruises. Fast. Easy. We just use our iPhone for our camera. We test at the kitchen table at home while sipping our morning coffee. For us, the bonus is that our insurance company reimburses the full cost of the test kit (which is more than the US Government minimum reimbursement of $13/kit). 

 

Once you order the kits from Optum, they are sent 2-day Fed Ex to your home. Do Not Open the kits. You only open the kits in front of the proctor. 

 

Once you show the proctor your negative test result, you get an email with your test results in a few seconds (literally). 

 

https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/where-can-i-purchase-an-emed-kit

 

https://store.optum.com/royal-caribbean-tests/

 

You can watch a guy taking the proctored test 

 

 

Edited May 10, 2022 by BirdTravels

[Biker19]

6 hours ago, iuki said:

Could you please explain Med Express to me.

They are a regional (mid-atlantic) health care facility - not going to help you in Hawaii.

[BillHoo]

 

[AspenRed]

18 hours ago, iuki said:

 Could you please explain Med Express to me.  

Med Express is an urgent care facility. They do Covid testing.

[the fish]

Anyone been successful using results from Rapid Test And Trace on RCL?

[Coralc]

5 hours ago, the fish said:

Anyone been successful using results from Rapid Test And Trace on RCL?

 

Not yet. But I don't see why it wouldn't work. IHealth monitored seems to be off the table for now. We have a lot of 'free' covid tests that are FDA approved and listed as acceptable by them. 

 

If testing is still required in September, that is probably who we will use. 

[the fish]

4 hours ago, Coralc said:

 

Not yet. But I don't see why it wouldn't work. IHealth monitored seems to be off the table for now. We have a lot of 'free' covid tests that are FDA approved and listed as acceptable by them. 

 

If testing is still required in September, that is probably who we will use. 

Yes, I am assuming it will work also.  It would be nice to have some confirmation before showing up at the port this Saturday.

[orville99]

On 5/9/2022 at 9:50 PM, Intent2smile said:

I have never used them but I would call them with the guidelines from Royal and make sure that their results meet all of the requirements especially the CLIA Cert number being on the results.  We heard someone on May 1st on our cruise that had to get tested again because the CLIA was not on their results

We have done eight sets of tests at CVS for cruises since the restart, and none of them have a CLIA Cert number on them. Not sure what you are talking about, because our test results have never been challenged at the port, and there is nothing in either the CDC or cruise line policy that mentions CLIA. CLIA is a trade association, not a certification body.

[BND]

5 minutes ago, orville99 said:

We have done eight sets of tests at CVS for cruises since the restart, and none of them have a CLIA Cert number on them. Not sure what you are talking about, because our test results have never been challenged at the port, and there is nothing in either the CDC or cruise line policy that mentions CLIA. CLIA is a trade association, not a certification body.

I just looked at the PDF from our emed test results from Mar 31 and there is no CLIA# on the document, but it does say CLIA down next to the Lab Director's signature.  We also used a lab in FL for our Nov cruise and it didn't have a CLIA number either.  I've never known anyone who has been turned away..

[deliver42]

I've tested for two cruises and never had the number either. One was from CVS, and the other from Walgreens.

[JanMD]

Just an fyi, we ordered the at home tests through the Royal Caribbean web site. The company is changing shipping vendors. My friends got their tests within 2 days expedited shipping through FedEx.  We were a week.  Was on phone with the company many times last week.  Make sure you order at least a few weeks before your cruise.  

[orville99]

31 minutes ago, BND said:

I just looked at the PDF from our emed test results from Mar 31 and there is no CLIA# on the document, but it does say CLIA down next to the Lab Director's signature.  We also used a lab in FL for our Nov cruise and it didn't have a CLIA number either.  I've never known anyone who has been turned away..

Apparently, it is a CMS (Medicare) program that certifies a laboratory's quality control practices and has nothing to do with the test itself:

 

"The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) regulates all laboratory testing (except research) performed on humans in the U.S. through the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA). In total, CLIA covers approximately 260,000 laboratory entities. The Division of Clinical Laboratory Improvement & Quality, within the Quality, Safety & Oversight Group, under the Center for Clinical Standards and Quality (CCSQ) has the responsibility for implementing the CLIA Program."

[maria1122]

We use Med Express always.  We get the printout in less then 1/2 hour.

[AspenRed]

1 hour ago, maria1122 said:

We use Med Express always.  We get the printout in less then 1/2 hour.

And you didn’t have any issues?