O’Hare and Midway International Airports will both deploy new coronavirus testing programs later this month, which the Chicago Department of Aviation calls the “most comprehensive airport testing option” in the United States.
Both airports will house testing facilities administering two different types of coronavirus tests, with rapid antigen tests and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests available at both airports.
“With two types of tests available at both airports, as well as our strict adherence to public health guidelines requiring face coverings and social distancing, we aim to provide the traveling public and the wider airport community with a safe environment and peace of mind,” CDA Commissioner Jamie Rhee said in a statement.
According to the CDA, many international destinations currently require passengers to have a negative PCR test result to gain access to foreign countries. Those test results can be delivered within 72 hours at the airport testing facilities, according to the press release.
The rapid antigen tests, meanwhile, should have results available to passengers within 20 minutes.
The new testing sites will be limited to travelers and airport employees, and proof of employment or travel will be required to get the tests.
Doctors Test Centers, the company contracted to set up the testing sites, will be looking to hire support staff for both testing and customer service at both sites, with more than 100 positions available at this time. Those interested in applying can visit DTC’s website.
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The testing facilities will be set up in parking lots near the airports, along with a walk-up, pre-security testing site adjacent to the traveling core at O’Hare. At Midway, that walk-up site will be located in the airport’s main terminal.
