Free COVID-19 tests will be back at end of September

Free COVID-19 tests will be available from the government once again starting at the end of September.

U.S. households will be able to order four free tests that expire at the end of the year from COVIDTests.gov. The tests will be able to detect current COVID-19 variants.

According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data, the most prevalent variant going around nationally is the K.P. 3.1.1 variant of the virus, making up almost 37% of all new cases as of Aug. 17.

The website is currently closed, but the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response said on its website it sent out more than 900 million free tests while it was open.

In Delaware, there were over 480 new cases of COVID-19 from Aug. 11-17, according to data from the Delaware Department of Health and Social Services. The number of new cases has decreased over the past month after an increase from early to mid-July. 

The FDA approved new mRNA COVID-19 vaccines from Moderna and Pfizer for emergency use on Aug. 22. These vaccines have a new formula for newer and more prevalent variants of the virus.

More on the new vaccines: COVID-19 vaccines are updated and ready for fall, FDA says

“Vaccination continues to be the cornerstone of COVID-19 prevention,” said Dr. Peter Marks, director of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research in a press release.

“These updated vaccines meet the agency’s rigorous, scientific standards for safety, effectiveness, and manufacturing quality. Given waning immunity of the population from previous exposure to the virus and from prior vaccination, we strongly encourage those who are eligible to consider receiving an updated COVID-19 vaccine to provide better protection against currently circulating variants.”