Beyond their convenience, the benefit of at-home Covid tests is that they allow people to get tested frequently, which can lead to catching more infections and, in turn, decrease spread, says Beeler.
Changes in Covid variants haven’t made at-home tests any less sensitive, so they’re still a wonderful diagnostic tool, Garner says. But because you’re taking the pattern for a test or doing the test entirely on your own, at least at-home Covid verification is less reliable than verification through professionals in a doctor’s office, experts told us. For this reason, if you’re at higher risk and/or experiencing symptoms despite testing negative at home, it may be helpful to have a formal checkup by a medical professional, Beeler says.
So, are at-home control strategies reliable? The answer is complex and depends on who is being controlled, when the control is performed, and the type of control used, Nachman says.
Anyone can use at-home Covid tests, and many options are suitable for children as well as adults. However, it’s very challenging for parents to test young children, says Nachman — if they’re moving around or you’re trying to collect a sample quickly so as to not upset them, you may not collect a good sample, which can skew results. If you’re concerned about collecting a good sample from kids by yourself or are having trouble doing so, experts say it’s best to get kids tested by medical professionals.
Yes, Covid checks can expire and you deserve not to use expired Covid checks, according to the FDA as well as our experts. “The expiration date is a guaranteed date until which a check will continue to work,” Garner says. “This means you can only accept the result as true if the check hasn’t expired. “
You can locate the expiration date of an indexed check in your box. Also, be sure to check the expiration date column in the FDA’s list of legal at-home Covid diagnostic checks, which lists the updated maximum expiration information. The expiration dates of Covid checks can be extended, meaning that “the manufacturer has provided knowledge that it appears that the shelf life is longer than was known when the check was first legal,” according to the FDA.
The US government’s program to provide free Covid tests to Americans is active lately. This means all families in the US can now request 4 free Covid tests at USPS. com. Orders ship free of charge and include 4 individual COVID-19 antigens right away. evidence.
You can get free or cheap Covid checks through insurance plans, which are now required to repay 8 checks per month for each user of a plan. Trials will be free at the time of purchase or you will be refunded if charged. (Be sure to keep your receipt if you want to file a claim with your insurance company for reimbursement. )Some fitness plans have a network of recommended providers, as well as pharmacies and online and user stores, from whom you can get free checks. If you buy checks at stores outside of this network, insurance companies must still reimburse you up to $12 per individual check (or the cost of the check if it’s less than $12).
Yes, many at-home Covid collection and verification kits are eligible for HSA/FSA, as long as the full charge has been covered through your insurance plan. Home Covid checks are also eligible for reimbursement with a fitness reimbursement plan (HRA). They are eligible for a Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account (DCFSA) or a Limited Purpose Flexible Spending Account (LPFSA).
At NBC Select, we work with experts who possess specialized wisdom and authority based on applicable education and/or experience. We also take steps to ensure that all expert recommendations and recommendations are made independently and without undisclosed monetary conflicts of interest.
Zoe Malin is an Assistant Update Editor at NBC Select and has been covering Covid since 2020. In addition to at-home Covid testing, she has also written about disposable masks, KN95 masks, N95 masks, KN95 masks for children, and vaccine card holders. For this article, Malin spoke to three experts about how to buy and use at-home Covid tests.
Find NBC Select’s detailed policy on private finance, generation and teams, wellness, and more, and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok to stay up to date.
Zoe Malin is an associate updates editor at NBC Select based in New York City, NY. She joined the team in 2020 as Select’s first-ever intern. Zoe specializes in topics like home and kitchen, wellness and fitness, pets and household basics from toothpaste to olive oil. Zoe leads Covid-19 coverage for Select, authoring guides to KN95 masks, N95 masks and Covid tests. She also helped start Select’s New & Notable column in 2020, which she’s written ever since. Zoe covers tentpole sale events including Amazon Prime Day, Black Friday and Cyber Monday, and works on articles highlighting minority-owned businesses, like Black-owned coffee companies and AAPI-owned food and drink brands. She’s constantly trying products like sports bras, ice cream makers, tinted sunscreen and more.
© 2024 SELECT | All rights reserved. The use of this website means that you accept the confidentiality regulations and the conditions of service.