Birmingham woman orders FREE at-home COIVD-19 tests, urges others to do the same

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WBRC) - Americans can now order free COVID-19 tests online.

The White House opened the federal website, https://www.covidtests.gov/ Tuesday and the official launch was Wednesday.

The tests will ship within 7 to 12 days after you order.

Officials expect the first shipments to go out at the end of January, according to the official site.

As soon as Shavonne Carson noticed the federal government’s free at-home COVID test ordering site was active, she said she quickly placed an order.

“Because it’s easier to have access to them instead of running around trying to find them at pharmacies. They’re sold out at the pharmacies. Urgent Cares are packed, and they stop taking patients at a certain time of day. It’s just hard trying to find them, so if you already have them on hand, you don’t have to run around looking for them,” Carson explained.

The Biden administration said the website went live a day early to make sure there weren’t technical problems.

Officials said supplies would be limited to four tests per household. Carson explained the process was easy for her, but there had been reports of confusion during the ordering process because once you click the link to order, you’re taken to a United States Postal Service (https://special.usps.com/testkits) website.

WBRC spoke with USPS about their involvement in the program. They sent us this statement:

Attributed to Postmaster General and CEO, Louis DeJoy:

“The United States Postal Service is proud to fulfill its mission of service to the nation by delivering COVID test kits as part of this important public health initiative of the Biden Administration. The 650,000 women and men of the United States Postal Service are ready to deliver and proud to play a critical role in supporting the health needs of the American public.”

Shavonne said she hoped everyone would take advantage of the offer, as she encouraged those she knew to place an order.

“When I got it, I told them to go ahead and sign up. Get the test for your grandparents. Sign them up as well. They don’t use computers, so somebody has to help them out,” Carson said.

If you need more tests click here.

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