U.S. to deliver free COVID tests as cases spike (NYSE:ABT)

The Biden administration introduced on Friday that it might resume a program to distribute free at-home COVID-19 tests to the American public in late September as the virus continues to acquire floor within the U.S. forward of a possible spike in the vacation season.

During a briefing, authorities officers mentioned that Americans will quickly find a way to use the COVIDtests.gov web site to order 4 free at-home COVID-19 tests.

The over-the-counter tests are designed to detect the most recent variants circulating within the U.S. and are legitimate to be used by way of the tip of 2024. Listed makers of at-home COVID-19 tests embody Becton, Dickinson (NYSE:BDX), QuidelOrtho (NASDAQ:QDEL), Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT), and Roche (OTCQX:RHHBY) (OTCQX:RHHBF).

“These tests will help keep families and their loved ones safe this fall and winter season,” Dawn O’Connell, an assistant secretary for preparedness and response on the Department of Health and Human Services, mentioned.

She added that since its starting in 2021, this system has allowed Americans to obtain greater than 1.8B over-the-counter COVID tests.

Its relaunch coincides with a current spike in COVID-19 cases and follows Thursday’s FDA approval of retooled COVID-19 vaccines from Pfizer (PFE)/BioNTech (BNTX) and Moderna (MRNA) adjusted for the KP.2 pressure of the Omicron variant.

The newest information from the CDC signifies that positivity in COVID tests has reached 18% over the previous seven days, in contrast to ~17% over the previous 4 weeks. Meanwhile, COVID-related hospitalizations have elevated to 4.4 cases per 100,000 folks in early August, up from 1.1 in early May.