SAN ANTONIO – If you’re looking for a free walk-up COVID-19 test site at a more centralized location, a new spot has opened at an already familiar place.
On Friday, Community Labs started offering testing for the virus at the Wonderland of the Americas in Balcones Heights. The site will offer PCR tests through self-administered nasal swabs and results are expected to be returned within 24-48 hours.
In addition to testing, the site also offers vaccinations and boosters. The facility is the only site with combined testing and vaccinations in Bexar County. The recent surge in COVID-19 cases brought on by the highly contagious omicron variant prompted health and city officials to make more resources readily available to the public.
Officials Friday night said that 1,953 received a test on the first day.
San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg along with Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff toured the facility located on the mall’s first floor.
“It’s sort of a unique mass testing site and a mass vaccination site upstairs and a testing site down here, we’re still doing around a thousand vaccinations a day up there so we’re thankful people are coming out,” Wolff said.
In a statement, University Health Chief Medical Officer Dr. Bryan Alsip said people with COVID-19 should wait for their symptoms to subside before getting a vaccine.
“People with COVID-19 should wait to be vaccinated (with either primary series or booster dose) until after their symptoms resolve and they have met the criteria for discontinuing isolation,” he said.
The Wonderland of The Americas testing site will be open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday on a walk-up basis only.
As people head out to various testing sites across the city, health officials remind the public of “fake” testing sites and urge everyone to ensure the test sites are legitimate.
Fraudulent sites can be reported through the Federal Trade Commission website.