Why are home COVID tests so expensive and hard to find? Months-long silences. Mysterious rejections. Here’s what’s behind the shortages of a critical tool for ending the pandemic. BY LYDIA DEPILLIS AND ERIC UMANSKY, PROPUBLICA
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few weeks ago, a ProPublica reporter decided to test his kids for COVID-19. They had the sniffles, and with a grandparent set to visit, he wanted to minimize the risk that they were infectious.
This was the problem that quick, cheap COVID-19 tests were supposed to help fix. No need to go to a clinic or wait days for results. Just pick up a pack of tests at a local pharmacy whenever you want, swab your nose and learn within 15 minutes if you’re likely to pass the virus along. So the ProPublican went to his neighborhood CVS,
hoping to buy the required pack of two for $23.99. They were out of stock. Then he went to Rite Aid. They didn’t have the tests either. Then Walgreens, then another CVS. All out of stock. The only supplier with a few tests to offer was his sister, who happened to have a few tucked away. [ continued on next page ]
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NOV. 24-30, 2021 ● ORLANDO WEEKLY
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