The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced Friday that American households would be eligible to order four COVID-19 tests starting in late September.
The free at-home tests provided by the federal government are capable of detecting new variants of the coronavirus, as officials report a nationwide surge in cases.
This announcement follows approval by the Food and Drug Administration of specialized COVID-19 vaccines designed to protect against new strains of the virus that have been prevalent in positive cases across the country this summer.
Despite this, Arizona cases have stayed “moderate,” according to wastewater data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
But local health officials warned there could be a slight increase in positive cases as school starts again.
Here’s what you need to stay safe and how to get free tests sent to your home.
Online requests for free tests return following previous success
According to the U.S. Department Health and Human Services, more than 900 million free COVID-19 tests were sent to American households since the pandemic began, regardless of insurance status.
Tests are ordered through the federal agency’s online website and shipped directly to homes, according to the HHS.
Orders for new tests were currently closed but expected to open in late September on COVIDTests.gov, according to HHS. A specific date remained unclear.
The HHS did not immediately respond to The Arizona Republic’s request for more information.
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How long are tests good for?
The new round of tests, available for order at COVIDTests.gov once the program relaunches in early fall, will be valid through the end of 2024.
At-home tests come with different expiration dates, some of which have been extended under an FDA emergency authorization. A complete list of these extensions can be found on the FDA’s website.
Arizona’s extreme heat could be particularly dangerous to COVID-19 tests, as the FDA warns extended exposure to high temperatures could impact the performance of the test.
The FDA recommended people who order free tests consider the shipping time frame to prevent tests from sitting outside any longer than during the usual shipping process.
Federal government says vaccines remain most effective way to protect against severe cases of COVID-19
On Thursday, the FDA approved emergency use of a new mRNA COVID-10 vaccine to combat variant strain Omicron KP.2.
The FDA found the well-tested vaccines were the foundation for COVID-19 prevention, according to Dr. Peter Marks, FDA director of biologics evaluation and research in a news release.
“These updated vaccines meet the agency’s rigorous, scientific standards for safety, effectiveness, and manufacturing quality,” Marks wrote.
Vaccine makers are required to submit to three stages of clinical trials to ensure that formulas are safe and effective, according to the CDC. Clinical trials require real-world tests that involve tens of thousands of volunteers of different demographics, the CDC added.
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The updated vaccines include Comirnaty and Spikevax for individuals aged 12 and older, as well as Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech, which have also produced vaccines authorized for individuals between 6 months and 11 years old.
“Given waning immunity of the population from previous exposure to the virus and from prior vaccination, we strongly encourage those who are eligible to consider receiving an updated COVID-19 vaccine to provide better protection against currently circulating variants,” Marks wrote.
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