If the hassle or expense of locating rapidCOVID-19home examination kits is proving to be a hassle , there ’s now another choice . start Wednesday , January 19 , the United States Postal Service ( USPS ) willshiphouseholds up to four exam upon request .
The rescript variety , which can be find on the USPS websitehere , beg your name and mailing savoir-faire for kits that are due to begin shipping in previous January .
There ’s not much fine mark to retrospect ; shipping is free and no insurance selective information is required .
At - home base speedy tests are generally believed to be less sore than PCR - based tests , which are sent to laboratories for brushup . Rapid test may trigger a delusive negative if drive too early or if a soul is still asymptomatic . While not the gilded standard , the kit are well-fixed to ego - administer and can provide issue within minute . ( confirming at - home resultsshould be reported to local health authorities to facilitate tail community bed cover . )
It ’s still too former to tell whether theUSPSsystem may be overwhelmed or otherwise experience some break . Some user report issues having kits mailed to apartment buildings or multi - unit dwellings , with the page rejecting the order as a duplicate . If this take place , you may tryputtingyour apartment or unit number in the address field of the shape .
The ring armor program , which isestimatedto cost $ 4 billion , localise the encumbrance on the USPS , which is seeing upward of 20,000 employee out crazy ; the agency is setting up temporary study centers to get the test outfit groom . The expectation is that the kits will ship seven to 12 days from the asking , so it ’s estimable to order them prior to needing them as a precautionary criterion .
If you ca n’t get through or pass your limit point , there are other options . Last week , most major insurance policy carriers began covering the cost ofat - home mental testing kits , either at the point of sales event or via reimbursement .
The at - home tests are part of a federal design to declare oneself more resources during the current surge of Omicron , a highly infective variate . A similar mail program offeringN95 masksmay be usable soon .
