Biden Admin To Stop Sending, Free COVID At-Home Tests.
The program is set to end on Sept.
2 because the national stockpile of rapid COVID tests is being diminished.
The specific number of rapid tests that have been stockpiled was not reported.
An unnamed official with the Biden administration stated that the program's end is due to lack of Congressional funding.
If Congress provides funding, we will expeditiously resume distribution of free tests through covidtests.gov, Unnamed Senior Biden Administration Official, via NBC News.
Until then, we believe reserving the remaining tests for distribution later this year is the best course, Unnamed Senior Biden Administration Official, via NBC News.
The administration has distributed nearly 600 million tests through the program.
The official with the Biden administration criticized Congress for failing to secure further funding.
The administration has been clear about our urgent Covid-19 response funding needs, Unnamed Senior Biden Administration Official, via NBC News.
We have warned that congressional inaction would force unacceptable tradeoffs and harm our overall Covid-19 preparedness and response — , Unnamed Senior Biden Administration Official, via NBC News.
... and that the consequences would likely worsen over time, Unnamed Senior Biden Administration Official, via NBC News.
While testing for COVID has waned, experts believe people have contracted the virus unknowingly.
It is also believed that many Americans who have had COVID once have likely been reinfected.
Medical experts, including Dr. Anthony Fauci, assert that COVID will continue to spike seasonally.
Without the program, a majority of Americans will still have access to free testing by other means
