Free rapid Covid-testing at Oakland International Airport

OAKLAND, Calif. - Oakland International Airport on Tuesday will begin offering free, rapid-result coronavirus tests to airport employees and the public. 

The airport said it’s working with CityHealth Urgent Care to make the tests available at its North Field terminal complex at 9070 Earhart Road. All OAK-based employees including tenant airlines, concessionaires, ground handling companies are eligible for testing.

Also, the general public may be tested on a scheduled basis through CityHealth’s website. 

Spokesman Roberto Bernardo confirmed you do not have to be a traveler to sign up for the test, which will produce near-immediate results. 

At San Francisco International Airport, testing is only available for employees. San Jose International Airport does not list any Covid-testing services on its website. 

The New York Times reported that Tampa International Airport was the first airport in the United States to offer the tests and they will be available to passengers flying on any airline. 

Last month, American Airlines that it will offer coronavirus tests to passengers, joining United Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines and JetBlue Airways in rolling out preflight testing. The tests, which range from rapid tests at the airport that return results in minutes to tests that take a few days, allow travelers whose results are negative to skip or minimize quarantine restrictions in various destinations.

The new tests come as the number of people flying both domestically and internationally continues to be at record lows, the Times reported.

Testing at airports, it is hoped, will ease the minds of would-be travelers who are worried about the safety of flying amid the ongoing pandemic.