Why are free Covid tests from the government ending so quickly?


while no one FREE COVID-19 TESTING While the deadline for mailing by the US Postal Service may have already passed this year, officials acknowledged that many people visiting mailboxes now will likely see their information shelf life Finish in a few months.

So far this season, about 20 million of the 32 million tests ordered through COVIDTests.gov have been shipped. According to the federal Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response, or ASPR, all must have a shelf life of at least two months.

“Possibly we are testing that we had inventory for a long time, because as we were purchasing, our receipts were increasing and now we are not purchasing as much. We are a little past the peak. COVID,” Arlene Joyner, director of ASPR's Office of Industrial-Based Management and Supply Chain, told CBS News.

Joyner's office oversaw the procurement and distribution of 12 brand of tests That's what COVIDTests.gov has supplied in its seven rounds so far.

“The purpose of that program is really to get people using these tests during the winter, because we know that's the season where people get sick the most, especially respiratory diseasesAnd they're preparing for family gatherings,” she said.

ASPR has always used a “first-in-first-out” approach, Joyner said, setting aside the oldest — but still usable — tests to send first. The same applies to the 7 million tests sent every week to places like food banks and libraries.

Joyner said, “This is to avoid inventory that is stagnant and sitting on the shelf. There's no use for it if it's there. And the worst case scenario is that it expires, and then we have to replace it.” Have to give up.”

Many of the kits were purchased even earlier in the pandemic, at a time when many manufacturers could prove to the Food and Drug Administration that their tests actually had a longer shelf life.

This is why there are often over-the-counter tests expiration dates which has been extended by the FDA, indicating that they are good for use long after the start dates initially printed on their labels.

ASPR uses database to track it repository of tests In seven warehouses to avoid shipping tests that are too old, Joyner said.

“Our system is very robust. We are confident that they should not receive any dating that falls short of our expectations,” he said.

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