New Site Builds on Pilot Program at JFK International Airport’s Terminal 4
Terminal B Can Provide 350 COVID-19 Tests per Day for EWR Airport Workers
NEW YORK, Aug. 20, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- XpresSpa Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: XSPA) (“XpresSpa” or the “Company”), a health and wellness company, today announced, in conjunction with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the opening of the XpresCheck at Newark Liberty International Airport’s Terminal B on August 17, 2020.
In its initial phase, testing will be available to EWR terminal employees, airline employees, and airport workers through an expanded contract with XpresSpa’s new brand, XpresCheck. The new facility has the capacity to screen up to 350 airport employees per day. Following this initial launch period, testing at EWR’s XpresCheck site is expected to be made available to passengers.
“Across the agency, we have employed various preventive measures to ensure the safety of travelers and airport personnel and are continually exploring ways to further enhance these measures,” said Kevin O’Toole, Port Authority Chairman. “We remain committed to implementing additional measures and policies, as well as expanding and exploring various pilots, such as this new on-airport testing site, to further safeguard those at our facilities.”
“The Port Authority has taken proactive measures to provide a safe environment for both employees and customers, including piloting a partnership with XpresCheck to bring testing right into our airport terminals,” said Rick Cotton, Port Authority Executive Director. “We look forward to seeing the results of the pilot at Newark Liberty and to further conversations with XpresCheck. We hope to see testing capability expand as widely as possible.”
XpresCheck, which began as a pilot at John F. Kennedy International Airport, was one of the first COVID-19 testing locations at a U.S. airport. The JFK site, which is managed by JFK-IAT and XpresCheck’s parent company XpresSpa, is now open to passengers in addition to airport employees for testing.
Similar to the site in JFK’s Terminal 4, the EWR testing site is a new modular site constructed on Level 3 in Terminal B. It provides six separate testing rooms and is capable of conducting both COVID-19 testing and antibody testing. These services will be available to all airport employees, including airline employees, contractors and workers, concessionaires and their employees, TSA officers, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CPB) agents. Both antibody testing and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing are available on-site, and the tests are sent to outside laboratories. All insurance plans are accepted outside of network and all information will remain private and HIPAA-compliant.
“Our airports are working hard to support the return of air travel to the pre-COVID levels and making sure our customers and employees feel safe and confident that when they come to one of our airports,” said Huntley A. Lawrence, Port Authority Aviation Director. “This testing site, which is also an example of our commitment to better serving our customers and employees, builds on our existing measures to improve the customer journey in every way possible.”
"We are thrilled to be launching in Newark Liberty International Airport next week, which will be our second XpresCheck testing facility in the NY Metro area,” said Doug Satzman, XpresSpa CEO. “We are also hopeful that we can bring XpresCheck to additional U.S. airports over time, leveraging our learnings to date in setting up and administering a testing facility so that we can do our part to keep safe those who work in the airline industries as well as travelers.”
About XpresSpa Group, Inc.
XpresSpa Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: XSPA) is a global health and wellness holding company. XpresSpa Group’s core asset, XpresSpa, is a leading airport retailer of spa services and related health and wellness products, with 50 locations in 25 airports globally. Through its XpresTest, Inc. subsidiary, the Company also provides COVID-19 screening and testing under its XpresCheck™ brand at JFK International Airport and Newark Liberty International Airport. To learn more about XpresSpa Group, visit: www.XpresSpaGroup.com. To learn more about XpresSpa, visit www.XpresSpa.com. To learn more about XpresCheck, visit www.XpresCheck.com.
About the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey
Founded in 1921, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey builds, operates, and maintains many of the most important transportation and trade infrastructure assets in the country. The agency’s network of aviation, ground, rail, and seaport facilities is among the busiest in the country, supports more than 550,000 regional jobs, and generates more than $23 billion in annual wages and $80 billion in annual economic activity. The Port Authority also owns and manages the 16-acre World Trade Center site, where the 1,776-foot-tall One World Trade Center is now the tallest skyscraper in the Western Hemisphere. The Port Authority receives no tax revenue from either the State of New York or New Jersey or from the City of New York. The agency raises the necessary funds for the improvement, construction or acquisition of its facilities primarily on its own credit. For more information or for updates from the Portfolio blog, please visit http://www.panynj.gov.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release may contain "forward-looking" statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. These include statements preceded by, followed by or that otherwise include the words "believes," "expects," "anticipates," "estimates," "projects," "intends," "should," "seeks," "future," "continue," or the negative of such terms, or other comparable terminology. Forward-looking statements relating to expectations about future results or events are based upon information available to XpresSpa as of today's date and are not guarantees of the future performance of the company, and actual results may vary materially from the results and expectations discussed. Additional information concerning these and other risks is contained in XpresSpa’s most recently filed Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, recent Current Reports on Form 8-K and other Securities and Exchange Commission filings. All subsequent written and oral forward-looking statements concerning XpresSpa, or other matters and attributable to XpresSpa or any person acting on its behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by the cautionary statements above. XpresSpa does not undertake any obligation to publicly update any of these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that may arise after the date hereof, except as required by law.
Investor Relations:
ICR
Raphael Gross
(203) 682-8253
Source: XpresSpa Group, Inc.
