(WXYZ) — As people scramble to the store to get their last-minute Thanksgiving groceries, others are trying to walk into pharmacies, clinics and labs to get a COVID-19 test this year.
This year for Thanksgiving, some people are requesting a negative test result before you come inside.
“We have collard greens here. That’s been my assigned dish to bring to the thanksgiving celebration this year,” St. Claire Shores resident Lekisha Weathersby said.
Weathersby and her family are keeping it small and playing it safe.
“We are making sure that we are vaccinated and that we have negative COVID-19 tests,” she said.
Her family isn’t the only one with a negative test rule.
Allison Heeres’ family is requiring the same thing. She’s getting a COVID-19 test before she heads west to Battle Creek to be with her family on Thursday.
“Both of my parents are in their 70s,” Heeres said.
And keeping them, her niece and nephew safe is a priority.
“One just got his first shot but hasn’t been able to get his second — he is 6,” she said.
At Worldwide Clinical Labz in Detroit, they’re working around the clock to get people their results before Thanksgiving.
“We’ve seen about a 30% increase in people coming in to get tested. It’s been pretty busy,” the company’s President Michael Clemmon said.
He says they keep getting calls from people trying to get last-minute COVID-19 tests.
“Most people are coming in to get prepared before they see loved ones. A lot of people want to make sure that they are not infected before they go and spend time with family,” he adds.
Clemmon says at his labs and most places can have your PCR results within 24 hours.
“We also have a rapid PCR that can come back within 45 minutes,” Clemmon said.
Other testing locations like CVS say their stores will “not be administering tests on November 25.”
But they are offering an alternative for customers: “We also currently offer the Abbott BinaxNOW, Pixel by LabCorp and Quidel Quickvue over-the-counter COVID-19 tests at CVS Pharmacy.”
Walgreens also has self-testing kit available at all of their stores for anyone looking to get their hands on a test on Thanksgiving.
For COVID-19 testing near you, visit the state’s coronavirus website.
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