If you’re like most people, you probably don’t have a lot of time to waste on health care. But if you’re like many others, you may be interested in getting free COVID at-home tests. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that all adults get at least one annual checkup to screen for COVID, which is called the CDC-19th Annual Report on Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). However, many people don’t have the time or money to go to a doctor’s office. That’s where free COVID at-home tests comes in. There are several different types of free COVID at-home tests available online. The most popular type is the rapid test kit. This kit takes about an hour to complete and results in a printout that includes your results. You can also order a blood test online or through a physical health center. If you’re interested in getting free COVID at-home tests, be sure to ask your doctor what type of test would be best for you. Some doctors may recommend testing for both HIV and hepatitis C, which are two separate diseases that can cause serious health problems.
To get your four free tests, you need to head to covidtests.gov. Once there, click on “Order Free At-Home Tests.” This will take you to a USPS website where you need to enter your information. They need your name and address. You can also share your email address if you’d like to be notified when the tests ship.
Once you order your four free tests, if you signed up with your email, you’ll get a confirmation that your order was placed.
The email also breaks down the fine print, clarifying that one set of four tests will ship to each address. “At-home COVID-19 tests will ship free starting in late January. USPS will only send one set of 4 free tests to valid residential addresses. We are unable to process duplicate orders for the same address,” the email reads.
That means if you have 11 people living in your home, you can still only place one order for that address. While that’s unfortunate, these measures were likely put in place to prevent scalpers from ordering excessive quantities and selling them.
If you want to make sure you get your test (currently, it says they’re shopping at the end of January), make sure to head to the website soon and get your order in, as there’s sure to be a backlog of people attempting to redeem their freebies.