Photo: JOSEPH PREZIOSO / AFP / Getty Images
The Department of Health and Human Services announced that the government is relaunching the website offering free at-home COVID test kits.
The site, Covidtests.gov, will go live on Monday (September 25) and allow every U.S. household to order four free testing kits. The kits will be delivered by the United States Postal Service.
The tests will be able to detect the currently circulating COVID-19 variants and will be good until the end of the year. The testing kits will also include information on how to check if the expiration dates of other testing kits have been extended.
To ensure there are enough COVID testing kits, the government has awarded $600 million to 12 manufacturers in seven states.
“Manufacturing COVID-19 tests in the United States strengthens our preparedness for the upcoming fall and winter seasons, reduces our reliance on other countries, and provides good jobs to hardworking Americans,” said Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response Dawn O’Connell. “ASPR’s investments in these domestic manufacturers will increase availability of tests in the future.”
The U.S. previously shipped out 755 million tests through the program before it was suspended last May, as the public health emergency for COVID-19 expired.