Welcome to the Color COVID-19 Community Testing Program
Color supports free COVID-19 lab testing for communities across the nation as part of the CDC’s Increasing Community Access to Testing (ICATT) program.
We’re excited to help you set up your testing program to keep your community safe with minimal time and resources on behalf of your team.
In this partnership, Color will prioritize your experience and support you in each step of creating a seamless COVID-19 testing system for your population. If you haven’t yet joined the program and would like to, click here to register your site.
Program Overview
Once you’ve signed up, we’ll send you emails to begin onboarding. Here’s an overview of how you’ll run your program:
Onboarding & Site Setup
These pages detail the steps to complete onboarding and set up your testing programs.
Once participating sites receive their site set up supplies, they can begin testing immediately.
Site Roles and Responsibilities:
Remote Market Manager
Your Remote Market Managers will be your main point of contact during program onboarding and will be ready to assist you as needed.
Some of the services your Remote Market Manager can provide are:
- Guidance and expertise on setting up your Self Swab Testing Station
- Virtual training with staff members as requested so they can provide the highest quality of service
- Assistance with coordinating sample pick up times at your location
If you have any questions, visit bit.ly/remotemarketmanager to schedule a one on one meeting with one of our Remote Market Managers.
On Site Point of Contact
The role of the site point of contact is to:
- Order test kits and supplies as needed
- Set up a kit distribution and sample drop off location
- Ship samples to the lab at the end of each testing day
How to set up your site:
- Use the 11×17 signage, sample collection bin, and biohazard bag you received from Color to set up a dedicated testing space where participants can pick up test kits and drop off their samples. This space can be indoors or outdoors, and participants can swab themselves at your site, offsite, or request a test be brought to them outside.
- Make sure registration fliers are available with each test kit.
- Let participants know the hours during which your testing site will be accepting samples. You can write this information on the printed signage you’re provided. Please remove the collection bin from your testing area when not accepting samples.
Your community testing site launch kit will include:
- 100 test kits
- Sample Collection Bin
- Sample Collection Bio Bags (15 Bags)
- 10 Return Shipping Boxes
- Covid Testing Table Runner
- 11×17 Signage
- 100 Registration Fliers
Other suggested supplies
(site to provide)
- Facial tissue
- Vanity mirror — table top
- Hand sanitizer
- Disinfectant wipes
- Latex gloves
- Trash bags
- Floor spacing decals
- Printed registration fliers in multiple languages (sent by Color via email and available under resources) as needed for your population
Collecting & Shipping Samples
How to test:
Someone is considered eligible for testing if they are symptomatic or exposed. Participants must complete each step, register, activate, and return their sample on the same day, or their test will not be processed and they will not receive results.
Step 1: Register
Participants register their test using the QR codes or URLs on the 11×17 signage or registration fliers. Please hand out a registration flier along with each test.
Step 2: Activate the Color Kit
Participants must activate a sample in order for it to be processed. If a sample arrives at the lab unactivated, it will be destroyed and will not be processed.
Step 3: Begin Sample Collection
- Participants will collect their sample by following the swabbing instructions at your site or outside in their car
- Participants will place the tube back into the bag and seal it
- They will then return the sample to the dedicated collection bin
- Participants should hold onto the barcode card included in the testing kit
How to prepare your samples for shipping:
Throughout the day, participants should place their testing sample in the small biohazard bag that the test comes in and place the bag in the collection bin. You can place the larger red biohazard bag inside the bin to help collect samples for shipping. The large red biohazard bags are reusable.
Assemble your return shipping box
Each return box comes flat with a pre-affixed shipping label, a large clear biohazard bag and a paper manifest.
Place samples in shipping biohazard bag
The clear biohazard bag in the shipping box holds up to 30 samples.
Before sealing the adhesive on the bag, make sure to remove all excess air.
Seal the shipping biohazard bag and place it in the return shipping box
Fill out the paper manifest and place inside the return shipping box
How to ship samples:
Work with your Remote Market Manager to create a shipping plan that works for you. Some shipping options include:
- Drop your shipment off at your nearest dropbox for the shipping partner on your pre-affixed label (FedEx or UPS).
- Work with your Remote Market Manager to set up a FedEx account to schedule pickups from your site.
Please check your local shipping partner (FedEx, UPS) website to determine daily cutoff hours as well as weekends and holidays when express shipping may not be available. If any sample does not get picked up by a shipping partner, it must be dropped off at a dropbox the same day or else the samples will expire.
Ordering More Test Kits
Based on your testing site’s volume, we recommend you always have at least 2 weeks worth of test kits and return shipping materials onsite. When ordering additional kits and return materials, please allow 5-7 business days for supplies to arrive from when they are ordered.
You can order more test kits and return shipping materials by clicking the button below. The password to access the order form is ColorTesting and is case sensitive.