Health
Round 3 of free at-home COVID tests now available from Biden Administration – New York Daily News
Americans are eligible to order eight more free at-home COVID-19 tests in an effort to prevent larger surges of the deadly virus, the Biden Administration announced Tuesday.
The announcement kicks off the third round of free test availability on the federal website COVIDTests.gov.
“As the highly transmissible subvariants of Omicron drive a rise in cases in parts of the country, free and accessible tests will help slow the spread of the virus,” the White House said in its Fact Sheet announcement Tuesday.
Americans were eligible to receive four free tests apiece in each of the previous two rounds of availability. Biden announced his goal of making 1 billion free COVID-19 tests available to people in the United States in January.
“Since then, over 70 million households have visited COVIDTests.gov to order at-home tests to be mailed directly to them,” the White House says.
“To date, the Administration has delivered approximately 350 million free tests to mailboxes and doorsteps across the country, in U.S. territories, and at overseas military bases, with most tests delivered by the U.S. Postal Service within 48 hours of shipping.”
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The announcement comes a day after the official death toll from COVID-19 reached the grisly milestone of 1 million Americans, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics. Experts believe the true death toll is even higher due to diagnosed cases.
New York City plans to distribute 16.5 million at-home COVID tests and 1 million masks for free over the next month, Mayor Adams announced Monday.
Anti-viral medications can also be acquired by New Yorkers through a hotline set up by the city. The city’s COVID alert status is currently at a medium risk level, and health officials suggest it could be upgraded to high soon.
“It’s never been easier for New Yorkers to get a free at-home test, a high-quality mask, or access COVID-19 treatments in New York City,” Adams said in a statement.
“I encourage all New Yorkers to go out and pick up a free at-home test as soon as they can to remain prepared, to mask up in indoor public settings, and to take advantage of the life-saving treatments we now have readily available to fight this virus.”
The U.S. has recorded more than 82 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 since the pandemic began more than two years ago, which is the most of any country.
“Since January 2021, the Biden Administration has taken significant action and invested resources provided by Congress to dramatically increase domestic COVID-19 testing manufacturing, the number of tests authorized for use in the U.S., and the number of places where Americans can get a test, as well as to decrease costs for consumers and increase access to free tests,” the White House said Tuesday.