Many of us are heading overseas and there is a standard PCR test requirement within 72 hours with proper test results instead of just SMS, for most airlines.
For Sydney, the cheapest options is via Histopath @ $100, done at airport on the previous day (considering your flight is after noon as the results will be available only at 9 am next day).
Next cheapest is 4cyte at $120
Edit:
Looks like there are other locations which offers $100 tests.
* Granville as per @DaddyJi
Useful, the cheaper the better. Paying $150+ PP for a required service is daylight robbery
$100 per person for a family of 4 is still high & would deter many from travelling now.
Some places also require a PCT at arrival, which potentially adds another $400
Yeah, I'm in the wait and see, not desperate to get away overseas anytime soon,
$100 per person for a family of 4 is still high & would deter many from travelling now.
Imagine the world of pain, if you test positive while overseas. It could take weeks/months to get a negative PCR test (due to viral shedding). so you can return.
Some countries mandate travel insurance to cover the costs of hospitalisation and treatment, so its worth checking the destination requirements before booking. Transiting is also another issue that needs to be considered as it may require additional PCR testing
@cheesecactus: Some are, you need to be fairly specific and ensure the country your visiting is not on the Smart Traveller "Do not travel" list that's excluded under coverage. I did price up a two week trip using CoverMore which was about $100 to cater for the $30,000 Covid Coverage mandated for the Vaccinated Travel Lane flight.
or a false positive, added stress and implication. Yeah, nah, big miss for now.
@TilacVIP: false positive isn't so bad, because you could get a negative test straight away, but yeah, still stressful.
Imagine the world of pain, if you test positive while overseas. It could take weeks/months to get a negative PCR test (due to viral shedding). so you can return.
Imagine the world where humans worked together and stayed home for a month. They would get rid off not only corona but the flu too, and wouldn't need to pay for masks, covid tests, the government spending on businesses who were hit by the pandemic and employees… What a world that would be…
They would get rid off not only corona but the flu too
Huh? I don't know what world your living in, but eradicating diseases like the flu isn't really possible or a worthy cause.
and wouldn't need to pay for masks, covid tests, the government spending on businesses who were hit by the pandemic and employees… What a world that would be
Governments around the world have generally been stupid about covid (more so in Australia and NZ, than other countries).
Huh? I don't know what world your living in, but eradicating diseases like the flu isn't really possible or a worthy cause.
But covid is, and you get the bonus with flu too.
@hanger7: There's more than one ¯_(ツ)_/¯
Although, we don't have to worry about that too much. Climate change will finish us off quicker.
I was chatting about that last night might be left in let say Newyork for 3months plus??
might be left in let say Newyork for 3months plus??
Yup - to compound matters, overseas labs don't all follow the same standard for what they consider a "positive" for a PCR test.
$150 is for the 1hr result.
Don't know what you're talking about mate, you can go and get free tests still, this is about a test for people travelling which has different requirements. I don't really think that we should be paying for people's travel expenses.
None of what you said made any sense nor did it have anything to do with what I said or what this thread is about.
My vaccine was free. And thankfully more effective than Sinopharm.
No wrongthink here sir.
I must have missed something… are tests not freely offered now?
You need a paid test that provides written results prior to overseas travel
In terms of outbound travel, you are correct that it is based on the airline and destination country. Not sure why you have been negged.
https://www.health.gov.au/news/health-alerts/novel-coronavir…
"Australians who are travelling overseas are not required to present a negative COVID-19 PCR test at check-in to meet Australian outbound travel requirements. However, some countries and airlines do require the presentation of a pre-departure test result at check-in before you will be allowed to board your flight. Travellers should check the entry requirements of the country to which they will travel and their airline requirements"
what about if you travel to QLD
Apparently also with your passport number and DOB on test results sheet.
Proper test results vs the SMS saying "No COVID"
You would think the government could now upgrade their tests so you can get an email you could print to provide a written result
No. Coalition needs to support its mates by making it a requirement to undertake a paid test. Nothing to see here, just move right along.
@Icecold5000: They get paid by Medicare for the 'free' government tests. Only difference is who pays.
@Icecold5000: No. "Travel medicine" like this has been a user pays service for a very long time.
There are specialised medical centres just providing the paid service. It's not covered by Medicare, because its not normal health care.
People's holiday costs shouldn't be paid by taxpayers or taken from other government spending. If travelling as part of your employment, your employer should pay.
So like cost of passports, airports, travel vaccinations, etc - those travelling need to meet that cost, not from the taxes.
@Icecold5000: It's not an ozbargain thread without some flog trying to make a left wing political statement based on nothing but their "feelings", which seem to change depending on who's in government…
I.e I would have thought it wouldn't be very left wing to "subsides the rich" who want to take an overseas holiday… But here we are, someone making that argument.
@Binchicken22: Yup. It’s just ‘feelings’ that the tens of billions which could have gone to funding hospitals and schools have been given to foreign investors and that this money has been borrowed and people like you and me will have to pay it back. Obviously this is an outcome you want for some particular reason but I don’t find it desirable.
@Icecold5000: You'll have to be more specific than that, but it seems like you are just completely defecting from your original point that these tests should be paid for by taxpayers.
@Binchicken22: Yet right wing people like you, 'free marketeers', no doubt feel that honest taxpayers should subsidise real estate speculators as currently happens?
Domestic tests used to protect the community are paid for by our taxes @ $100 a pop. Is it fair for said taxes to subsidise travel expenses out of the country for whatever reason?
@bargainshooter: Why not? The govnt has just paid tens of billions of dollars in jobkeeper subsidies to companies who didn’t suffer revenue drops last year.
@Icecold5000: Difference is money paid to companies can still flow into employees even if the companies make a profit.
There is no gain from personal travel for the community if you just want to holiday overseas.
Personally I don't plan on overseas trip anytime soon. Australia is so vast and with varying landscape I rather support Aussies first especially when local tourism has been decimated as well.
Actually even better it will be posted and you can even reply post to identify your fax number.
You can access NSW state goverment test results through your myhealth record.
Not sure how different NSW is from SA.
My mate got his 'regular free' COVID test done @ Port Augusta (SA) through SAPathology and was given an email stating the result details.
With that he was able to travel overseas on 1st Nov (ADL-SIN-DXB-COK) on Singapore Airlines/Emirates.
All he had to do, was call up SAPathology and request an email result.
May be someone has to check with NSW Health (or private providers) whoever collects the swab, if they can provide something over email
Swabbed - 31st Oct 3pm
SMS - 1st Nov 5.30 am
Email - 1st Nov 8 am
Not sure if this is an one-off from SA Pathology, given his circumstances.
His father passed away on Sunday morning and he wasn't able to find a paid pre-travel covid test over weekend. First available slot was 9am Monday and 24 hrs from there to get the results.
Calling up SA Pathology, explaining the situation, he was asked to swab at a regular testing site in Port Augusta.
Email came about 17 hours after swabbing and he was able to travel on the first flight out on Monday 10am from Adelaide.
NSW Health do this if you're tested at a NSW Health site (eg hospital) - you get a letter as a PDF and a QR code that can be scanned to verify it's a legit result.
As to whether anyone overseas or airlines accepts it….
@b3au: Do the NSW Health letters include all of the following information required for entry to the US?
* Type of test (indicating it is a NAAT or antigen test)
* Entity issuing the result (e.g., laboratory, healthcare entity, or telehealth service)
* Sample collection date
* Information that identifies the person (full name plus at least one other identifier such as date of birth or passport number)
* Test result
@6e23: I should've read page 2 before commenting as someone else had already mentioned it https://www.ozbargain.com.au/comment/11284253/redir
I don't have any recent results so scanning the QR code shows an expired message - so I don't know if it shows any more details
I just noticed the letter specifically says to 'support their travel'. Again - it's up to the other end as to whether they accept it or not.
@6e23: Yes, it has all the details, name/DOB/Address necessary to identify a person. Passport number is not strictly required according to what you have written.
@b3au: Didn't know that. Only got SMS when I took a test a few months back. Looks like it's a new thing.
@Love a bargain: Yep I think it's a few weeks old?
Maybe someone with a recent test can confirm what the QR code shows when scanned
@51ngh: Not really
My friend was able to travel overseas via Singapore Airlines / Emirates, with a test report not mentioning his Passport number.
@maddykartik: It may well have been a one-off or a special case for your friend.
Did you see the documentation yourself? Maybe it did have his passport number.
this is express service that meets travel requirements
I believe these tests specifically come with a report/certificate of some sort, required for travel. Some countries don't let you in with just SMS text results.
Your GP can request a "proper" test bulkbilled.
Not for travelling purposes
How can that be? which doctor?
Welcome to 1984 mate. "It's for your protection".
Hmmm. Many downvotes. Clearly hit a nerve. Pity the downvoters didn't leave comments. We might have learnt something from each other. Oh well.
I know, what a load of crap
100 bucks for a test kit what a rip. best thing to do is not travel till the pandemic is over.
I agree, better to avoid travel unless emergency. It's an open robbery, and stress level you have to go through for test/waiting for results etc., are not worth it. +1 for the great information.
stress level you have to go through for test/waiting for results etc
This might be the second-dumbest comment in the thread (behind the one to justify the since-revoked neg vote).
A pre-travel PCR test is for healthy, asymptomatic people to confirm they present no risk to fellow travellers at the airport and in the air - and to show respect to the people of the country they're travelling to.
I think you might be missing the point of the comment. If you fail the test (because you have it or false positive) then you miss your entire flight and there is a lot of money to be lost that travel insurance won't cover.
So essentially a $100 cost to lose $1000-5000
@samfisher5986: a lot of travel insurers now cover cancellation and quarantine if you test positive for COVID. I am travelling overseas to see family for christmas and my insurance covers up to $10k for that. What they do NOT cover is if the government closes the borders.
@dreamtime: If you don't mind me asking, which travel insurance company did you go with? I'm having trouble finding one that covers travel to Canada.
@7am: Both CoverMore and Medibank cover it, and are underwritten by same company. However, Medibank was quite a bit cheaper and you get 15% off if you are a member. Seems to be pretty comprehensive. Again though, does not cover you if there are government closures or if you are going on a cruise.
@dreamtime: but when do you need to get the insurance? Before booking any flights? Or can you purchase it afterwards and be reimbursed
@dreamtime: I think there would be a good opportunity for someone to create a comparison website of travel insurance options particularly tailored around the exact COVID cover being offered.
@samfisher5986: No. I understood his/her point. They were just off the mark.
It's a $100 test for a common good outcome of not infecting a plane load of other people and/or people in the country of arrival. It's a test given to people who are feeling healthy and otherwise right to travel. Accordingly, the vast majority of people have absolutely nothing to worry about.
And, if worse comes to worst (ie a positive result) - it's better to find out while you're still in Australia and have access to early treatment under the Australian health care system. A $5K loss from a positive PCR test is actually the least of your worries. You have COVID19, champ.
@bazza1980: Paddy's Markets will get you sorted. And, as long as you avoid the more dodgy-looking food vendors, no Bali Belly either. ;-)
Maybe you should lower down a notch before you call the comment dumb. The stress of missing your flight is real, besides battling through cancellations ans insurance claims after.
You might be waiting a long long time. Unfortunately this will be the new norm, as delta won't be the last. There are already infections with the new delta plus variant then there will always be more variants
2 year or 3 years I am waiting.
Yes let’s wait out the flu as well
@ChadHominem: This is the stupidity from people they have no idea how much worse Covid is over the Flu virus. the Covid virus eats flu viruses for lunch. close to 6 million people died from covid globally in only 2 years. the flu took over a decade to ever get 1 millon deaths. You let Covid loose it will wipe out most of the population. And clearly you don't under stand how vaccines work. In order for us to live with Covid and live a normal life again, we need to give it time to work which means everyone needs to do there part.
@kungfuman: As long as the rich get to travel for fun and spread covid to the poor, they don't give a poop.
@kungfuman: People have been dieing from flu related health complications for a very long time. Nothing new. Just this is the first time global media has fear mongered this hard. And people are the weakest they've ever been and will believe anything at this point
@jdawg7: No. This is a different virus. It's exponentially worse than influenza which has had a good century of time to mutate.
We eradicated the flu in Australia. Think about that chum.
@jdawg7: the flu hasn't disappeared its just less common now because of all the lockdowns, humans are like viruses they like to spread everything to everyone.
![[NSW] Pre-Travel COVID Test $100 @ Sydney via Histopath](https://files.ozbargain.com.au/n/31/660831.jpg?h=90130e4e)
Great to know.
Thanks