INDIANA – The US government will relaunch a program to provide four free COVID-19 home tests to Americans, the US Department of Health and Human Services said Wednesday.
“We will once again begin our program to provide Americans with an opportunity to request tests,” HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra said during an event at a Washington CVS Pharmacy where he was vaccinated against COVID-19 and flu.
US households can order four free tests from Covidtests.gov starting September 25.
Take an at-home test:
- If you begin having COVID-19 symptoms like fever, sore throat, runny nose, loss of taste or smell, or
- At least 5 days after you come into close contact with someone with COVID-19, or
- When you’re going to gather with a group of people, especially those who are at risk of severe disease or may not be up to date on their COVID-19 vaccines
What if you test Positive?
A positive at-home test result means that the test found the virus, and you very likely have COVID-19.
If you test positive, follow the latest CDC guidance for isolation.
Treatments for COVID-19 are now widely available. If you test positive and are at high risk for severe COVID-19 (age 50 and over or you have a weakened immune system or other health conditions), talk to a doctor as soon as possible about available treatment options.
What if you test Negative?
A negative at-home test result means that the test did not find the virus, and you may have a lower risk of spreading COVID-19 to others. Check your test kit’s instructions for specific next steps. If you test negative, you should test again within a few days with at least 24 hours between tests.
If you test negative, follow the latest CDC guidance for self-testing.
The Test-to-Treat program is one easy way to get treatment. Test-to-Treat locations will give you a test and treatment. Find a Test-to-Treat location near you
The relaunch of the program comes as COVID-19 hospitalizations have been on the rise in the US since July, with weekly admissions now more than triple what they were two months ago.
Recent CDC data shows more than 20,000 people in the US were admitted to the hospital with COVID-19 during the week ending September 9 — about 8% higher than the week before.
