Christ Health Center in partnership with Church of the Highlands is launching an effort to test for COVID-19, the novel coronavirus, in Birmingham.
Testing will begin on Tuesday, March 17. Christ Health Center, in partnership with Church of the Highlands, Assurance Scientific, and in consultation with Jefferson County Department of Public Health and local hospital authorities will open a COVID-19 drive-thru testing site open daily from 10 a.m to 2 p.m. Hours will be re-evaluated daily.
Entry to the site will be through the Cahaba River Road entrance to the Church of the Highlands Grandview Campus located at 3660 Grandview Parkway in Birmingham. Access to the site will not be granted from the HWY 280 entrance.
More places to get tested: Where to get tested in Alabama
Testing resources are scarce nationally and are limited to those experiencing symptoms of cough or fever or persons who have had direct in-person exposure to someone who has been diagnosed with COVID-19. Please help protect these resources by not presenting if you are not certain you need to be tested. Test results will be delivered within 72 hours of testing.
Helpful Information:
- Those who arrive for testing will be asked pre-screening questions to gain access.
- In the interest of public health, all persons must remain in their vehicles with their windows rolled-up.
- As you are presenting for a possible contagious disease, no restroom facilities will be available.
- If you consider yourself in need of COVID-19 testing, you are declaring you should self-quarantine until such time you receive a negative COVID-19 test result.
- Only Alabama residents are qualified at this testing site.
- Lab testing will be billed through your insurance provider, including all major carriers, Medicare, and Medicaid. Church of the Highlands, Assurance Scientific, and Christ Health Center have established a fund to cover fees for those without insurance.
- No one will be turned away for inability to pay. Testing is limited to 500 persons each day to best allocate scarce resources.
So far in Alabama, 22 people have tested positive for the novel coronavirus. In total, more than 3,000 people across the United States have tested positive. Gov. Kay Ivey declared a state of emergency on Friday. Public schools in Alabama will close Wednesday. The governor has also directed state employees to work from home.
