Need a free COVID-19 test in Beaufort County, even if you’re vaccinated? Where to go
There’s a renewed demand for coronavirus tests in Beaufort County.
As COVID-19 cases spike, and the super-contagious Delta variant spreads across South Carolina, hundreds of residents are seeking tests, mirroring levels of interest last seen this past spring.
Even fully vaccinated people are inquiring about tests again: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention quietly changed its testing guidance last week to suggest that all inoculated residents get a COVID-19 test if exposed to someone with the coronavirus.
“Fully vaccinated people should be tested 3-5 days following a known exposure to someone with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 and wear a mask in public indoor settings for 14 days or until they receive a negative test result,” according to the CDC.
The CDC previously said that inoculated people exposed to COVID-19 did not have to get tested if they had no symptoms.
The vaccines from Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson are still effective against the highly transmissible Delta variant, but new data show that vaccinated people, in uncommon “breakthrough infections,” may carry viral loads similar to those in unvaccinated residents, if they contract the variant, the CDC’s director has said.
In other words, vaccinated people could potentially spread Delta to those who are still unvaccinated, the director has said.
Free testing
Here’s where Beaufort County residents can now get free COVID-19 tests, according to health care websites, a local hospital spokesperson and the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control:
Beaufort Memorial Hospital: Free drive-thru testing is available at 990 Ribaut Road, behind the Beaufort Memorial Medical and Administrative Center, Mondays through Fridays from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. No physician’s order is needed.
DHEC: You have two options. There’s a free drive-thru testing site in a parking lot off Bluffton Parkway at Tanger Outlets 2 in Bluffton. The site is open daily from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (Look for the white tents.) Sign up for a testing time at https://www.tourhealth.com/ or by downloading the Gov2Go app on your phone. Also, the Beaufort County Health Department is hosting free testing from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. weekdays. The health department is located at 601 Wilmington St. in Beaufort. Test results are expected within 72 hours, according to DHEC. If you have not received your results in that time frame, email ACC-Testing-CustomerService@dhec.sc.gov or contact DHEC’s COVID-19 Testing Call Center at 1-888-697-9004.
Other options
DHEC also has an online list of private health care providers that offer COVID-19 tests, including rapid tests, like the Doctors Care location in Bluffton: https://bit.ly/SCTestingMap
Make sure to review the prices of tests available at urgent care centers and doctor’s offices. If you have health insurance, confirm whether testing costs are covered under your plan.
Do-it-yourself rapid tests are also sold at area stores like CVS, Kroger and Walgreens. The BinaxNOW testing kit costs $23.99. Each kit includes two self-swab, 15-minute tests.
