Iowa pharmacists are being given the opportunity to expand the state’s testing capabilities by providing both diagnostic and serology COVID-19 testing. Currently, Rex Pharmacy in Atlantic and Oelwein Family Pharmacy are two independent businesses currently administering COVID-19 tests. Director of Communications and Digital Engagement for the Iowa Pharmacy Association, Allison Hale, says many other Iowa pharmacies are well-positioned to also provide this service. They can either partner with a lab to send a collected specimen in for analysis or they can test, analyze and provide results at the pharmacy. As the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approves COVID-19 tests, both models will increase in the coming weeks. All results from tests performed at an Iowa pharmacy will be reported to the Iowa Department of Public Health. “With pharmacies located in all of Iowa’s 99 counties,” says Iowa Pharmacy Association Executive Vice President and CEO, Kate Gainer, “there is a network of easily accessible sites for testing. Pharmacists are prepared to provide this important public health service.”
