The Biden administration will again offer free COVID-19 at-home tests to US households prior to the upcoming chilly fall and winter months, which may result in an increase in new cases.
The Department of Health and Human Services stated on Wednesday that it has granted $600 million to 12 domestic manufacturers to produce 200 million new over-the-counter COVID-19 tests, which will be made available to the general public beginning on September 25 through COVIDTests.gov.
The tests, which are available for use through the end of the year and will identify the coronavirus variations that are presently circulating, are free for households to buy up to four of.
“The Biden-Harris Administration, in partnership with domestic manufacturers, has made great strides in addressing vulnerabilities in the US supply chain by reducing our reliance on overseas manufacturing,” HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra stated. “These critical investments will strengthen our nation’s production levels of domestic at-home COVID-19 rapid tests and help mitigate the spread of the virus.”
The 200 million tests that manufacturers will generate for use by the federal government may be spaced out over an 18-month period, according to Dawn O’Connell, assistant secretary for preparation and response at HHS. This means that producers may concentrate on filling orders if demand for home tests increases through the internet or through American shops as COVID cases rise across the nation, but they will also have a backup market for the tests they create when demand is low.
The most recent program from the Biden administration followed four earlier deployments that, according to HHS, gave over 755 million Americans free COVID exams. Despite the fact that the COVID-19 public health emergency was formally resolved in May, public health authorities across the country have begun to record a steady rise in instances of the virus.
