US brings back free at-home Covid tests as part of winter plan
Image credit: Los Angeles Times
The government is once again offering free at-home COVID-19 tests to US homes to stop the virus’s spread this winter.
According to the White House, the federal website COVIDTests.gov allows users to order up to four quick tests.
The test programme, which had been put on hold in September, would resume on Thursday, with deliveries starting the week of December 19.
The choice is being made as the number of COVID infections increases before the holidays.
After distributing more than 600 million free at-home tests, the Biden administration ceased in September because Congress did not authorise the additional cash required for the programme to continue.
However, a US official said that the government is now paying for the tests with money that was left over from the American Rescue Plan, the COVID relief measure that was passed last year.
A senior administration official told reporters on Wednesday, “We are confident that we are going to have enough tests to get through this round, four per family, in the coming weeks.
It is a component of a larger White House strategy to get ready for COVID this winter, when some Americans face a higher risk of contracting the virus as they spend the holidays indoors.
The White House stated that it aimed to get Americans to take at-home tests when they exhibit symptoms, before and after holiday travel, and when they pay visits to vulnerable people.
COVID instances, hospital admissions, and fatalities have all started to climb recently.
While White House officials have recommended Americans get the most recent COVID and flu vaccinations, several localities are urging people to wear masks once more inside to stop the spread of respiratory infections.
According to the CDC, only 13.5% of Americans aged five and older have received the new coronavirus injection that targets the omicron variant.
The increase in incidence is being caused by highly contagious omicron subvariants, which are currently the predominant coronavirus strains in the US.