SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 24, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- United
Airlines today became the first U.S. airline to launch a COVID-19
pilot testing program for travelers that could make it easier for
them to manage quarantine requirements and entry conditions of
popular destinations around the world. Starting on October 15, customers traveling on United from
San Francisco International
Airport (SFO) to Hawaii will have
the option to take a rapid test at the airport or a self-collected,
mail-in test ahead of their trip.
The rapid Abbott ID NOW COVID-19 test – administered
by GoHealth Urgent Care and their partner Dignity Health –
provides results in approximately 15 minutes and will be available
to United customers on the same day as their flight departing from
SFO. The mail-in test option will be administered by Color and
it is recommended that customers initiate testing at least 10 days
prior to their trip and provide their sample within 72 hours of
their trip.
The airline worked closely with Hawaii officials to ensure that any United
customer – both visitors and Hawaiian residents returning home –
who tests negative on either test would not be subjected to the
state's current 14-day quarantine requirement. United currently
offers more flights to Hawaii than
any other major network carrier including daily service between
San Francisco and Honolulu (HNL), Maui (OGG) and Kona (KOA). The carrier plans
to increase service to Hawaii on
October 15, including the resumption
of service between San Francisco
and Lihue (LIH) and additional
flights between San Francisco and
Maui and Kona.
"Our new COVID testing program is another way we are helping
customers meet their destinations' entry requirements, safely and
conveniently," said Toby Enqvist,
Chief Customer Officer at United. "We'll look to quickly expand
customer testing to other destinations and U.S. airports later this
year to complement our state-of-the-art cleaning and safety
measures that include a mandatory mask policy, antimicrobial and
electrostatic spraying and our hospital-grade HEPA air filtration
systems."
Click here for b-roll and still images of
COVID-19 testing at SFO
GoHealth Urgent Care Rapid Test
United first partnered with GoHealth Urgent Care in July to test
its international flight crews at SFO. United now plans to expand
that testing infrastructure to include customers who wish to be
tested for COVID-19 pre-flight. Customers can schedule their visits
online in advance for the on-site testing facility that is located
at the international terminal and will receive their results in
approximately 15 minutes. GoHealth Urgent Care's dedicated COVID-19
testing area will be available from 9 a.m.
to 6 p.m. PT daily.
"We are excited about expanding our partnership with United and
continuing to support their proactive safety measures," said
Todd Latz, CEO of GoHealth Urgent
Care. "Our on-site, real-time testing for passengers is yet another
example of GoHealth's nationwide efforts to fight the spread of
COVID-19 and ensure a safer return to normal activities and
business operations."
Color Physician-Ordered Self-Collection
Test
United is working with Color to offer self-collected, mail-in
tests for customers traveling to Hawaii. United will email customers traveling
from San Francisco to Hawaii an invitation to purchase their
physician-ordered Color self-collection kit at least 10 days ahead
of their departure, collect their own samples at home 72 hours
prior to their departure and return their test via overnight mail
or to a drop box at SFO.
Color then processes those tests at their local, CLIA-certified
COVID-19 testing laboratory and returns results via text and/or
email within 24-48 hours. Color's self-collection kit includes a
plastic collection tube, a non-invasive nasal swab and instructions
on how to properly collect a specimen.
"Convenient, widespread COVID-19 testing with fast and reliable
results is critical to a return to normalcy and to accelerate the
economic recovery," said Caroline
Savello, Chief Commercial Officer at Color. "We are proud to
partner with United to support the safe and responsible return of
travelers to the skies."
United CleanPlusSM
Since the start of the pandemic, United has been a leader among
U.S. airlines in enacting new policies and innovations designed to
keep employees and passengers safer when traveling. It was the
first U.S. airline to mandate masks for flight attendants, quickly
following with all customers and employees. United was also among
the first U.S. carriers to announce it wouldn't permit customers
who refused to comply with the airline's mandatory mask policy to
fly with them while the face mask policy is in place. United was
also the first U.S. airline to roll out touchless check-in for
customers with bags, and the first to require passengers take an
online health assessment before traveling. And last week, the
airline announced it will apply Zoono Microbe Shield, an EPA
registered antimicrobial coating that forms a long-lasting bond
with surfaces and inhibits the growth of microbes, to its entire
mainline and express fleet before the end of the year.
For more details on all the ways United is helping keep
customers safe during their journey, please
visit united.com/cleanplus.
About United
United's shared purpose is "Connecting People. Uniting the
World." For more information, visit united.com, follow @United on
Twitter and Instagram or connect on Facebook. The common stock of
United's parent, United Airlines Holdings, Inc., is traded on the
Nasdaq under the symbol "UAL".
About GoHealth Urgent Care
GoHealth Urgent Care is one of the country's fastest-growing,
largest and most technology-forward urgent care companies. At
GoHealth Urgent Care, we provide unparalleled experiences that are
effortless, personal and connected through partnerships with
market-leading health systems and our communities as a whole.
GoHealth Urgent Care operates approximately 150 urgent care centers
in the greater New York
metropolitan area, the Portland,
Oregon-Vancouver,
Washington metropolitan area, the San Francisco Bay Area, Hartford and South Eastern Connecticut,
Winston-Salem and Charlotte, North Carolina, St. Louis and Springfield, Missouri, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, Northwest Arkansas and Delaware. GoHealth Urgent Care is a TPG Growth
portfolio company, the middle market and growth equity investment
platform of TPG, which has more than $103
billion of assets under management. To learn more, please
visit www.gohealthuc.com.
About Color
Color is a leader in distributed healthcare and clinical
testing. Color makes population-scale healthcare programs
accessible, convenient, and cost-effective for everyone. Color
works with health systems, employers, and national health
initiatives around the world including the million-person All of Us
Research Program by the National Institutes of Health. For more
information about Color and its response to COVID-19, visit
www.color.com.
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SOURCE United Airlines