FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Broward County Commissioner Mark Bogen said he was impressed when he learned that Tampa International Airport was the first airport in the country to have a coronavirus testing area.
The demands for test results have increased for travelers around the world, so the airport teamed up with BayCare Health System to make $57 rapid tests and $125 PCR tests available in October.
Bogen said the TIA vision helped Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport to become the second airport in the country to have a coronavirus testing area this December. Online appointments are required.
“I think we need to arm everybody with anything we can get during the pandemic,” Bogen said, adding testing makes traveling safer.
The testing area opens just after the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended that travelers get tested before and after trips this holiday season. The CDC is discouraging all travel this winter. Social distance, washing hands frequently, and wearing a face mask are measures to reduce the risk of infection.
The testing area at FLL will be at the lower level of Terminal 3, which is the airport’s main terminal. According to Arlene Satchell, a spokeswoman for the Broward County Aviation Department, it will open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily starting on Dec. 9.
Nomi Health, a startup based in Utah, will be providing both rapid testing for $69 and the PCR test for $99. Online appointments and tickets to fly out of FLL, or Miami and Palm Beach international airports are required.
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