Hayat Pharmacy COVID-19 testing site to operate 24 hours a day beginning Jan. 1

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- Starting Jan. 1, Hayat Pharmacy will operate its COVID-19 testing site 24 hours a day. This, after lines wrapped around the parking lot and down the street for hours on Wednesday, and it's the same at many other testing sites.

"Had a sibling that got ill, he tested positive today, so he reached out to me so I'm deciding to just get tested right away," said Paul Shell, who waited two hours to get tested today despite not having any symptoms.

Lack of symptoms is something Hayat pharmacists say is common even among people who test positive right now.

Other people, like Chris Skrzypchak, were double checking a negative at-home test after having symptoms.

"Those aren't 100%, so I'm getting the more comprehensive test here," said Skrzypchak.

Pharmacist Hashim Zaibak, CEO of Hayat Pharmacy, said it all started Dec. 20.

"Since then it started by doubling, tripling, quadrupling, and now it's ten times," he said.

In ten days, Hayat Pharmacy went from testing 150 people a day to 1,500 people a day. 

"As we know by now, Omicron is the most contagious variant of COVID we've ever had to deal with, so when somebody tests positive a lot of people around him or her are going to test positive," said Zaibak.

He said they're hiring more staff, and expanding their operation to try and help with the need for testing right now.

"So as of Jan. 24 we are going to go 24 hours at least temporarily because the community right now really needs a lot of testing," said Zaibakj.

You can also get tests by appointment at CVS and Walgreens, as well as at the following locations:

Northwest Health Center, 7630 W. Mill Road
Drive-thru garage – Enter at Mill Road Library, 6431 N. 76th St.
• Monday, Wednesday, & Friday: 9 a.m. - 3 p.m.
• Tuesday & Thursday: 12 - 6 p.m.
• Saturday: 9 a.m. - 1 p.m.

Southside Health Center, 1639 S. 23rd St.
Drive-thru heated tent in North parking lot - Enter on 24th St.
• Monday, Wednesday, & Friday: 9 a.m. - 3 p.m.
• Tuesday & Thursday: 12 - 6 p.m.
• Saturday: 9 a.m. - 1 p.m.

Menomonee Valley Site, 2401 W. St. Paul Ave.
Drive-thru garage
• Monday, Wednesday, Fridays: 12 - 6 p.m.
• Tuesday & Thursday: 9 a.m. - 3 p.m.

Those sites will be open Jan. 1 and 2. You can find more sites by clicking here.

Hayat Pharmacy will be open New Year's Eve and Day, you can CLICK HERE to make an appointment.