“Delaware County Council is building a better future for Delaware County, not just focusing on the challenges of today, but the promise of tomorrow,” said Council Vice Chair Richard Womack inside the 69th Street transportation hub Wednesday morning. “We’re working to build a better future for our families, our neighbors and next generations, and we’re doing it by investing in programs and expanding access, eliminating barriers and (meeting) people not where we wish they were, but where they are.”
Delaware County Health Department Director Lora Siegmann Werner said the new kiosks bring the total number in the county up to five. The other three are located at the Yeadon Wellness Center, the Keystone First Wellness Center in Chester and the County Government Center in Media.
“We really want to thank all of our partners for their support and enthusiasm that’s helping bring these public health visions to life,” said Werner. “We’re really grateful to Delaware County Community College and SEPTA, for opening a facility and being willing to assist us in reaching residents.”
The kiosks dispense numerous health-related items for free, such as condoms, Narcan nasal spray, emergency blankets, tampons and pads, COVID-19 rapid antigen tests and even laboratory PCR testing for respiratory illnesses and sexually transmitted infections.
The kiosks, first launched in September, are offered through a contract with LTS, formally known as Longview International Technology Solutions, with current costs of about $15,000 per month. Those costs are covered by opioid lawsuit settlement funding, as well as various grants.
Werner said the machines’ stocks are electronically monitored and restocked as needed.
Health department spokesman Matthew Rankin said most of the items can be issued to residents anonymously, but laboratory tests obviously require the user to provide contact information. Those tests are usually collected within 12 hours and results are typically delivered within 24 to 48 hours of drop-off, he said.
“All the items inside are free for all residents to use and since September 2024, we have dispensed nearly 2,000 public health products to our residents, and we just know that will grow after being installed in these high traffic locations,” said Werner. “… I encourage everybody here: Take control of your own health, anytime, on your own terms.”
District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer said the kiosks now also offer free gun locks, a service his office had previously provided through the sheriff’s office and other avenues with limited success.
He said gun safety is a non-partisan issue that everyone agrees needs to be taken seriously and he was happy to report that one lock had already been distributed from the 69th Street kiosk earlier that day.
Rankin said a total of 16 locks had been dispensed from all machines by Wednesday morning.
Delaware County Community College Director of Safety and Security Matthew Brenner was also on hand for Wednesday’s announcement.
He said the most popular items on campus so far appeared to be first-aid kits, but he was able to provide one of those locks to a young mother after she spoke to him about having a firearm in the house.
The DA’s office had also previously been responsible for distributing Narcan in the county, Stollsteimer said, which the kiosks are also helping get to communities where it is needed, along with drug test strips.
Stollsteimer noted President Donald Trump’s administration recently began promoting a holistic approach to the drug problem in America that encouraged exactly what Delaware County is already doing with Narcan and test strips.
“We are all in the same business of saving people’s lives, so I just want to say to anybody who might be talking to the president in the days to come, Delaware County is already ahead of you. We just need continued funding to keep this program going and to expand it,” he said.
State Sen. Tim Kearney, D-26, Swarthmore, said he has learned during his tenure in elected office that some of the best solutions come from simply listening to what people need and then providing it.
“I’m proud to have played a role in helping secure the location of this Test and Go kiosk because I believe that local and state leaders can come together with a purpose, and when that happens, great things happen and greater benefits are available to our constituents,” he said. “Access to health care should never be a luxury, it should be something to count on, right in your neighborhood. These kiosks are about making things easier, safer, more accessible to people who may not always have the time or the means to get to a hospital or to an urgent care.”
© 2025 Daily Times, Primos, Pa. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
