Washington State Reopens COVID-19 Test Portal For 3rd Time
2/8 UPDATE: For the 3rd time, the Washington State Department of Health has reopened its online portal for people to order COVID-19 rapid tests.
This time, about 1.5 million tests will be available.
Tests will arrive a few days after ordering.
–Original Story–
OLYMPIA, Wash. — Washington State has reopened its online portal to order at home COVID-19 tests.
You can order up to 5 free tests per household.
The portal initially opened on January 21st, but closed within 8 hours because supply had been drained.
The free tests can be ordered at www.sayyescovidhometest.org .
People can order up to 5 free tests per household.
The state warns that supply will be limited at first, but the portal will be restocked as tests come in.
“We anticipate people’s initial need in the test kits will exceed our current supply pretty quickly, but our focus is sharing what we have right now,” said Lacy Fehrenbach, MPH, CPH, Deputy Secretary for Prevention & Health. “We want to make sure the tests we have are in homes when our state needs testing the most – during this current surge.”
People can still get COVID-19 tests through any of the following options:
- Order free at-home COVID-19 tests through the Federal program COVIDtests.gov.
- Purchase an at-home test at local retailers and pharmacies.
- If you have health insurance, most insurers will now directly cover or pay you back for up to 8 at-home tests per month, for each person on your plan.
- Find a test at a testing location near you.
“This is an important step toward making tests more widely available across the state,” said Umair A. Shah, MD, MPH, Secretary of Health. “As we work with our federal partners, we look forward to seeing an increase in the number of tests flowing directly into people’s homes over the next several weeks.”
