Americans can now claim another set of free COVID-19 tests.
The federal government has announced that starting this week, each U.S. household can order four more free at-home tests. They will start shipping out the week of Sept. 30.
You can order more tests via the website of the U.S. Postal Service, which will deliver them to you for free.
They will be antigen tests, also known as rapid tests. They work by detecting proteins from the virus that causes COVID-19, whereas molecular tests like polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests work by detecting genetic material from the virus.
Antigen tests are less likely to detect the COVID-19 virus than molecular tests — especially in someone whose infection has just started or who isn’t symptomatic yet. So repeat testing is important when using antigen tests.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) explains:
“Currently, all at-home COVID-19 antigen tests that are FDA-authorized are authorized for repeat testing, also called serial testing. This means people who receive a negative test result should use multiple tests over a certain period, testing at least twice over three days if they have symptoms and at least three times over five days if they do not have symptoms.”
If you still have tests on hand at home, the government urges you to check their expiration dates before throwing them out. The expiration dates of some tests have been extended.
You can learn more about COVID-19 test expiration dates — and find expiration dates for specific tests — on the FDA website.
If you are in urgent need of testing for COVID-19, your options include:
- Buying an at-home test at a retailer, such as a pharmacy.
- Checking for free testing sites in your area. Visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s free COVID-19 testing website to search for one near you.
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