COVID-19 Testing Available to All Albertans
Alberta Health Services
Submitted
RED DEER – All Albertans are now eligible for COVID-19 testing, whether experiencing symptoms, or not.
Offered by appointment and free-of-charge at six AHS assessment centre locations around the Central Zone, testing is easily booked online by visiting www.ahs.ca/covid. If internet is not available to you, you can instead call 811, and 811 staff will book a test appointment for you.
Testing, which is done via a swab of the throat, will tell you whether you had COVID-19 at the time your swab is taken, even if you were not showing symptoms at that time. Testing will not tell you whether you have previously had COVID-19. It will also not tell you whether you have any immunity to COVID-19.
Results will be provided to all Albertans, by phone, within a few days of the swabbing appointment.
Regardless of your test results, it is important to continue to follow the public health measures and recommendations in place, to reduce spread of COVID-19.
Anyone who tests positive for COVID-19 is legally required to self-isolate. The isolation period is for 10 days from the start of symptoms, or until symptoms resolve, whichever takes longer. If you do not have symptoms but do test positive, you must still self-isolate for 10 days from day of test. If you develop symptoms within that 10 days, you must self-isolate until symptoms disappear or for 10 days from symptom onset, whichever is longer. For details on legally required self-isolation, visit: https://www.alberta.ca/isolation.aspx
Expanded testing is an important part of the effort to contain COVID-19 in Alberta. The testing will provide a clearer picture of how well Alberta’s public health measures are working to contain COVID-19. This information is important to help guide further progress in Alberta’s relaunch.
It’s best to know: getting tested helps us to protect each other and move forward together.
To access the full scope of locations at which you can book your testing appointment, and to learn more, visit www.ahs.ca/covid, complete the online assessment, and book your appointment today.
There are presently assessment centres in Red Deer, Lloydminster, Camrose, Drayton Valley, Rocky Mountain House and Drumheller. The online booking tool is set up to provide the location of the assessment centre closest to the person based on their postal code.