Kroger has announced that more than 220 Little Clinic locations will conduct COVID-19 sample gathering (NOT testing).  This initiative expands the take-home sampling kits available for Kroger employees.

Since the clinics and take-home kits are merely for harvesting swabs, with PCR tests performed at designated laboratories, the entire exercise is useless unless results are obtained within two days to allow for quarantine and tracing of contacts.  If Kroger can achieve a 48-hour turn around for results, the program will be of benefit. If the program cannot provide results expeditiously the entire activity of sampling and assay will be an exercise in collecting swabs and "going through the motions" without any direct epidemiologic benefit.