White House Restarts Free Covid Testing As Cases And Deaths Rise — Here’s How To Order Free Rapid Tests
Topline
American households will once again be able to order free Covid-19 tests by mail, the White House announced on Thursday, part of the Biden administration’s wider efforts to stave off the virus as winter approaches and Covid cases and hospitalizations tick upwards.
The White House announced plans to distribute free Covid tests to U.S. households again.
Key Facts
Beginning Thursday, U.S. households can order up to four rapid Covid tests for free at covidtests.gov, the White House said in a statement.
Orders will be mailed to households and will start shipping from the start of next week, the administration said.
The White House, which paused the free testing program in September due to a lack of funding, said it used “limited existing funding” to purchase the tests as Congress has yet to pass additional funding to cover the country’s Covid response.
Free tests will also be distributed at as many as 500 major food banks, the White House said.
The White House said the tests are part of a wider plan to avert possible coronavirus surges this winter as cases and hospitalizations tick up, which includes placing federal medical teams on standby to help strained healthcare facilities, releasing a “winter playbook” for administrators of nursing homes and long-term care facilities and preparing to send out critical supplies like masks, gowns and ventilators to states when they need them.
The Biden administration is “prepared for whatever the virus throws our way,” the White House statement said.
News Peg
Public health experts and officials fear another Covid wave is looming on the horizon. The White House’s testing scheme revival comes as cases and deaths trend upwards. Cases—which have steadily increased from around 260,000 a week in mid October to around 300,000 a week at the end of November—reached nearly 460,000 in the first week of December, the most recent CDC data available, a jump of more than 50% from the week before. The same dataset shows nearly 3,000 people died with Covid in the first week of December, a jump of more than 60% from the week before. At least 9,000 people died with the virus in November—around 300 to 400 every day—around two to four times the rate people are dying from flu, firearms, motor traffic accidents and opioid overdose. Hospital admissions for patients with confirmed Covid have been steadily ticking up for weeks and sit at a 7-day average of around 5,000 people, according to the CDC. Though far off pandemic peaks of more than 20,000 admissions, it is also well away from pandemic lows of around 1,400 and has not dropped below 3,000 admissions since May.
What To Watch For
Covid is on a possible collision course with a number of other respiratory illnesses like respiratory syncytial virus, RSV, and flu. The threat, dubbed a “tripledemic” by some officials, is already straining some pediatric hospitals in numerous states and poses a particular risk to very young children and older people. After months of declining use, face masks have returned as a precaution health experts are recommending to Americans to stay safe, particularly over the holiday season, colder weather and rising cases.
Big Number
600 million. That’s how many free at-home tests the White House said had been distributed at the time the initiative was paused in September. The scheme launched in January.
Further Reading
Covid Still Killed Over 9,000 Americans In November, As Attention To It (And Boosters) Declines (Forbes)
Can You Catch A Cold From Being Cold? Scientists Say Yes, And It Turns Out The Answer Was Right Under Our Noses (Forbes)
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