People can now order one other spherical of 4 free COVID-19 exams for this season, the U.S. Postal Service introduced Monday, as well being officers have been making ready for an anticipated resurgence within the virus over the approaching weeks.
The 4 extra exams will ship totally free beginning the week of Nov. 27, the USPS says.
The best way to order extra free COVID exams
The exams will be ordered on-line at covid.gov/exams or via the postal service’s webpage — the identical because the earlier spherical of free exams provided in September.
Households that didn’t order their first batch of 4 free exams after ordering reopened earlier this fall will have the ability to place two orders from the USPS, for a complete of eight free fast antigen COVID-19 exams.
The Division of Well being and Human Companies, which provides the exams out of its stockpile of previously-purchased kits, mentioned final week that 56 million exams have been delivered to this point this season. That works out to round 14 million American households who’ve requested exams.
Federal well being officers have been urging People to proceed to make use of COVID-19 exams to cut back the danger of spreading the virus throughout this vacation season, alongside different precautions like vaccinations and masking.
COVID-19 testing also can assist individuals determine whether or not they need to hunt down a course of Pfizer’s Paxlovid, a drug remedy that may assist stop extra extreme signs. The medicine stays accessible because it transitions to the personal market this month.
The brand new check kits comes as well being authorities have been carefully scrutinizing information monitoring the virus, with instances forecast to extend this winter.
After weeks of largely slowing or flat COVID-19 developments, the Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention reported Friday that some indicators — emergency division visits and hospitalizations — had begun to extend “barely” nationwide.
COVID-19 nonetheless makes up the most important share of emergency division visits for viral respiratory diseases across the nation, in response to the CDC’s figures, whilst flu and RSV developments have accelerated in current weeks.
“I hope you are still carrying masks when you’ll want to, I hope you are getting that up to date vaccine,” HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra instructed a gaggle of public well being organizations on Wednesday.
Becerra mentioned he had not too long ago gotten again from a cross-country flight together with his 90-year-old mom.
“There weren’t many individuals masked, however we have been, thank God. Truly, she’s the one which introduced out the masks first and jogged my memory as a result of the very last thing I would like is for her going into Thanksgiving to have contracted COVID,” Becerra mentioned.
