COLUMBIA, S.C. — The covid testing line on Bull Street in Columbia has seen an unprecedented increase in demand following the Christmas and New Year Holiday.
Because of this DHEC is handing out PCR test kits to people in their cars to administer themselves.
It's being offered to people who may have taken a test before and know how the process works.
People will actually take the bag that contains the test, leave the line, and go home and use the swab to complete the test. They can then mail back that sample and it will be processed by DHEC in 48 to 72 hours.
Because of traffic, DHEC says that they're working on relocating this site to a bigger location.
DHEC said in a statement, “Every effort is being made to increase capacity to meet this demand, but it is likely that DHEC will need to relocate this site to prevent further traffic backups and significantly reduce wait times for individuals being tested. Additional details will be provided in the days ahead as plans are made for this relocation."
It's unclear where the new site will be located, but that information will be updated in the coming days.
According to DHEC, 300 testing sites are open throughout the state every day. Results usually arrive within 48 to 72 hours. If you have not gotten your results back after 72 hours, they urge you to call their covid-19 hotline.
A full list of COVID testing sites can be found on DHEC's website.