WASHINGTON — With fall already underway and winter to follow, the federal government notes that at-home testing is key to stopping the spread of new cases of COVID-19.
“Whether or not people are done with it, we know the virus is there, we know that it’s circulating," Dawn O’Connell, assistant secretary for preparedness and response at HHS, said.
Where do I order free COVID tests?
Starting Monday, American households are now able to order four, free at-home tests by going to COVIDTests.gov
The federal website also includes a primer from the FDA on extended expiration dates for the at-home tests.
The tests are designed to detect COVID variants currently circulating and are intended for use by the end of the year.
The initiative follows four previous rounds where federal officials and the U.S. Postal Service provided more than 755 million tests for free to homes nationwide.
It is also meant to complement ongoing federal efforts to provide free COVID tests to long-term care facilities, schools, low-income senior housing, uninsured individuals and underserved communities which are already distributing 4 million per week and have distributed 500 million tests to date, the department said.
O’Connell also said that each winter since the pandemic began “as people move indoors into heated spaces” cases rise and added that also “there’s always an opportunity or chance for another variant to come” but “we’re not anticipating that.”
“That’s not why we’re doing this,” O'Connell said. "We’re doing this for the fall and winter season ahead and the potential for an increase in cases as a result.”