Here’s where you can still get a COVID-19 test, with providers in Utah cutting down locations and hours

But doctors say getting a test is still important for anyone with symptoms or possible exposure.

(Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune) A TestUtah nurse will test for Covid-19 in the parking lot of the South East Health Department in Moab on Friday, May 14, 2021.

Coronavirus testing providers in Utah are reducing locations and operating hours as the demand for testing subsides along with new cases.

However, as other respiratory diseases re-emerge as Utahners increasingly abandon social distancing and masking, health experts say it is still important for patients with symptoms to get tested.

Some of the test sites provided by the Utah Department of Health will be “driven back a few hours,” a move that began Monday, department spokeswoman Charla Haley said.

At the University of Utah Hospital, “we’re currently not even filling half of our appointment slots,” said Kylene Metzger, a spokeswoman for the hospital, where staff closed a stadium testing center about two months ago and cut test appointments two weeks ago.

And Intermountain Healthcare plans to shut down its mass testing sites in July and instead refer patients to appointments at doctor’s offices, said health system spokesman Jess Gomez.

The surge in other illnesses this summer makes it difficult to diagnose “because we know that seasonal or persistent COVID-19 can cause a common respiratory infection that looks like a cold or serious illness and pneumonia, and someone on a ventilator,” said Dr. Eddie Stenehjem, Infectious Disease Specialist at Intermountain.

[Read more: Could Utah have a cold season this summer? Maybe, thanks to COVID-19.]

“Now people have a cold that could be coronavirus, that could be rhinovirus. And it really highlights the fact that we need to keep testing people who are symptomatic, ”Stenehjem said. “Even if you think it’s just a common cold, you still need to get tested for COVID-19.”

Laboratories in Utah now process about 6,000 tests per day, up from about 26,000 from the high in early January, according to the Utah Department of Health.

For lab-processed PCR tests, most sites are now collecting saliva samples rather than deep nasal swabs. Patients should not take anything orally for at least half an hour before the test – for example, eating, drinking, chewing gum or tobacco, or brushing their teeth. Faster, but less accurate, antigen tests are done on-site with a throat swab.

Test details

Here is information on how to get tested with the largest providers in Utah.

University of Utah: The US has about a dozen locations from Ogden to Orem. For each, the patient goes to the clinic at an agreed appointment and is given a set to collect saliva. The patient leaves the building to take the saliva sample – for example in his car – and brings it back to the clinic. Patients must have at least one symptom of COVID-19, likely have been exposed to the virus, or have a directive from a health care provider or employer requiring a test.

Intermountain Healthcare: Patients must complete a form to determine if they qualify for a test and to schedule an appointment. At the time of the appointment, the patient picks up a saliva collection set near the building entrance, provides the sample and returns it to a labeled container at the same test location. Tests by the patients’ doctor’s offices will be scheduled from July.

TestUtah-operated Utah Department of Health websites: Patients are encouraged to register on TestUtah.com for an appointment at one of 14 locations across the state. The sites test patients with or without symptoms and offer saliva-based PCR tests and rapid antigen tests. Locations and opening times that have not been reduced this week are listed here.

Utah Department of Health locations manned by Utah National Guard personnel: Patients are encouraged to register for an appointment at one of 15 locations across the state via Coronavirus.utah.gov. The locations offer PCR tests using swabs and saliva as well as molecular and rapid antigen rapid tests.

Some locations have reduced hours this week: Cottonwood Heights Town Hall, Nebo School District Office, Weber State University, and Highland High School have fewer days of operation; Daily hours will be reduced at Utah State Fairpark and the Cannon Health Building in Salt Lake City; and both Washington County websites and a Weber High School website are down this week.

However, a location in Uintah County was added and lessons at Murray High School and Rio Tinto Stadium were expanded.

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