No-prescription, rapid COVID-19 home tests to be sold at CVS, Walgreens and Walmart beginning this week (2024)

Consumers will be able to buy rapidcoronavirus tests without a prescription this week at three national chain retailers, an expansion that comes as the nation's vaccination effort accelerates and states relax distancing requirements and mask mandates.

Abbott Laboratories'BinaxNOWcoronavirus self-test kits will be shipped toCVS Pharmacy, Walgreens and Walmart locations, and also will be soldonline. The two-test kit, which last monthreceived Food and Drug Administration emergency-use authorization for serial screening, will cost $23.99, the company said.

Another rapid test made by Australia-based Ellume will be sold at CVS stores in Rhode Island and Massachusetts for $38.99. It also can be purchased online or at mostCVS stores in other statesby the end of May.

These retail tests eliminate another barrier for people who want to test themselves without visiting a doctor or a telehealth provider. Both tests deliver results in about 15 minutes and don't require a lab.

'More confidence about the results':FDA authorizes two rapid coronavirus tests for home screening

The retail tests give consumers another optionto get tested even as several states have convertedmass testing sites to mass-vaccination sites. Testing nationwide began decreasing last winter as state and local public health departments steered limited resources to vaccination, saidJennifer Nuzzo, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security.

"I still have worries, and the biggest lingering one is the potential cost of these tests," said Nuzzo, a Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health associate professor and epidemiologist.

Although the retail cost of the tests are on par with an insurance copayments, Nuzzo said that's too much for some disadvantaged consumers and communities.

"This increases options for some, not all. So we have to keep working to make these tests more widely available," she said.

Both Abbott's and Ellume's tests are antigen screenings that are considered less sensitive than lab-based PCR tests. But some studies suggest frequent antigen testing can accurately detectwhen a person is infectious and most likely to pass the COVID-19 virus to others.

The National Institutes of Health is supplying free rapid antigen tests for up to 160,000 residentsof Pitt County, North Carolina, and Hamilton County, Tennessee, to evaluate communitywide interest.Residents in those communities will be able to access theQuidel homecoronavirus test to test themselves three time each week over one month.

The Food and Drug Administration has authorized several more tests that allow people to collect nasal or saliva samples at home, but thesamples must be sent to a lab, which delays results for one to two days.

Although Ellume last December became the first to get FDA emergency-use authorization for a no-prescription home test, the test has not been available for the public to purchase until now. In addition to supplyingCVS locations, Ellume is marketing its test to large employers for return-to-work testing. The company also is working to fulfill a$230million Department of Defense contract to build U.S.manufacturing and deliver 8.5 million tests.

The pandemic is not over:As Americans get vaccinated, fewer are getting tested for coronavirus, which doctors say could be a big problem

Abbott makes tens of millionsof BinaxNOW tests each month and can expand capacity as demand requires. The company said the tests will be available at some CVS, Walgreens and Walmart locations this week and will be more broadly available over the next couple of weeks. Abbott plans to sell its test atother yet-to-be-named food and drug retailers within weeks.

The FDA's emergency authorization of theBinaxNOW coronavirus self-testallows home use for people with or without symptoms of COVID-19. The test isrecommended for serial screening twice over three days with 36 hours between tests.The FDA also authorized the Quidel QuickVue coronavirus test, whichdelivers results in 10 minutes and also can be used without a prescription.

Ken Alltucker is on Twitter at@kalltucker, or can be emailed at alltuck@usatoday.com.

No-prescription, rapid COVID-19 home tests to be sold at CVS, Walgreens and Walmart beginning this week (2024)
Top Articles
Latest Posts
Recommended Articles
Article information

Author: Amb. Frankie Simonis

Last Updated:

Views: 6494

Rating: 4.6 / 5 (56 voted)

Reviews: 95% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Amb. Frankie Simonis

Birthday: 1998-02-19

Address: 64841 Delmar Isle, North Wiley, OR 74073

Phone: +17844167847676

Job: Forward IT Agent

Hobby: LARPing, Kitesurfing, Sewing, Digital arts, Sand art, Gardening, Dance

Introduction: My name is Amb. Frankie Simonis, I am a hilarious, enchanting, energetic, cooperative, innocent, cute, joyous person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.