Well the White House tweeted this about an hour ago as part of a longer thread on the distribution of the tests…
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Twin Cities metro: received an e-mail this morning that tests are arriving today by 9 pm. When I checked tracking the delivery time was updated to noon-4 pm. Informed Delivery also included the notice. We ordered on 1/18. ZIP code’s median household income is nearly 2x the median for the US so probably was not prioritized for processing and delivery.
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Also, just checked with my daughter who lives in Chicago. Her zip code’s median household income is lower than ours and, at least in her building, there are a LOT of elderly. She ordered her tests on 1/18 as well and hasn’t received them or a notice yet. However, regular mail delivery in Chicago has been a disaster since the start of the pandemic so she isn’t too surprised. The sheer volume of tests going to Chicago might also be slowing things down, perhaps?
I was wondering if this was the case. Good.
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Remember, folks can buy and be reimbursed by their insurer for at home tests, up to $12/test, up to 8 tests/person/month. They appear to be in stock more around Hi than before. Walgreens and cvs both had test kits in stock last times I checked.
@HImom Medicare folks can’t do this….yet…but will be able to do so by early spring…or so they say.
Right now…this reimbursement is for those with private insurance.
Sadly, that’s correct, but some of us on Medicare also have private insurance or a gap or supplemental plan—check on whether there is coverage from that. For peace of mind, we have purchased test kits. At $10-13 each, it was worth it to us. This was before winter holidays when we knew kids would be flying in and we’d be around vulnerable 90+ year olds.
Maybe that’s why we hicks in Maine got the tests before people in the rest of New England.
Well, I believe my zip code likely has a lot of elderly, judging from our experience.
Now mine are coming today- just got the email. High number of elderly in this town.
my neighbor got theirs two weeks ago, yet, NADA for us. I tried to order again thinking I did something wrong, but says that this address was already ordered from.
At this point I just give up. By the time I get them, they will likely be expired.
I received mine on Wednesday. The brand is Clinitest and the single package contains five tests. Expiration date is 11/22. My parents, who live two miles from here and ordered at the same time, have not gotten theirs yet.
The tests being sent out seem to have expiration date many months from now, so I’d just be patient. If you need tests sooner, insurers will reimburse, so check with your insurer’s website on the process for getting reimbursed.
Unless you are a Medicare participant. If so, these free tests won’t be available until “early spring” whenever that is.
And NO….having a supplement doesn’t matter.
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I ordered a long time ago and still have not received them yet.
Sorry to read that. For folks who do have private insurance or whose kids do, they can get reimbursed tests through doing the process set out by their insurer. I sent in our online reimbursement claim on 2/2. Will see when my reimbursement check arrives.
Mine arrived today. iHealth, 2 boxes with 2 test in each; expiration date of 7.12.22. The same test sell for $17.98 per box on Amazon.
The ones my husband ordered to his work PO Box with an email for delivery Monday. I will go next week and see if they are indeed in the box; depending on how it is packed, it might not fit in our small box, so I need to go when the post office is opened.
Tell the truth, the at home tests seem silly. If you actually want to know if you have Covid, get a PCR test that is much more sensitive and accurate, not an antigen test with a high potential for false negatives. I’m afraid this will give people a false sense of security.
The at home tests are convenient and “something” and I believe they have their place. I don’t think it replaces the PCR test but can be useful to use if one may have symptoms that could be regular allergies or something else. If the person questions the result, they can and should also get PCR.
As a practical matter, many folks won’t hunt down a place to get a PCR test and they aren’t as readily available as these at home test kits.
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Problem is, I think people will use these because it’s easy, and not make the effort to get an accurate PCR test. They have symptoms, take the antigen test, see, I’m good, life as normal. Whereas if they had the more sensitive PCR test, nope. Having a false sense of security is worse than not knowing, in my opinion.