Staying Fit
If you need a rapid at-home COVID-19 test and have private health insurance, your insurer will pay for up to eight tests a month for you and anyone else covered under your health plan.
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This new federal government requirement came as the COVID-19 omicron variant has propelled the number of U.S. coronavirus cases to the highest level ever, with 797,216 new cases reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Jan. 12. As cases mount, consumers also find that at-home tests are increasingly difficult to find — and expensive.
Many pharmacies and other stores have taped signs to their front doors that say: “No COVID Tests.” And early in January, a major national grocer was selling a single test online for $49.99, according to Lindsey Dawson, an associate director at the Kaiser Family Foundation. That’s more than twice what these tests have been costing.