Free COVID tests available as holiday season approaches. Here's how to get them

Henry Schwan, Worcester Telegram & Gazette
Updated ·2 min read

WORCESTER — As we head into the holiday season, the U.S. government is making free tests to detect COVID-19 available to every household in America.

Four tests can be ordered through covidtests.gov. The same number of free tests was available in September. Those who didn’t place an order at that time can make two orders now, for a total of eight tests.

Funds from the federal American Rescue Plan Act pay for the tests. The thinking is that more testing will help curb the spread of COVID-19 during the holiday season that runs from Thanksgiving to New Year’s Day as more people travel and attend gatherings.

The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases has been dropping recently in Worcester, according to the latest figures from the state Department of Public Health: 37 from Nov. 5 to 11, compared to 41 from Oct. 29 to Nov. 4.

It's a different story statewide, with an uptick in confirmed cases: 2,153 from Nov. 5 to 11 compared to 2,068 from Oct. 29 to Nov. 4, or a 4% increase. As for COVID-19 deaths, they're on the decline in Massachusetts: A total of 23 confirmed and probable deaths from Nov. 5 to 11, compared to 28 from Oct. 29 to Nov. 4.

The percentage of hospital admissions statewide for COVID-19 is on the downslope: 1.7% of the more than 14,000 hospital admissions for acute respiratory disease (COVID-19, influenza, respiratory syncytial virus) from Nov. 5 to 11. The prior two reporting weeks with the same number of hospitalizations had percentages of 2.1% and 2.6% respectively.

Nationwide, all major indicators show a rise in COVID-19 from Nov. 5-11, compared to the previous week:

● 8.4% test positivity for the most recent reporting week was up slightly from the prior week. Test positivity is the percentage of all coronavirus tests performed that are positive

● Emergency Department visits: Of the roughly 16,000 in the U.S., 1.4% were tied to COVID-19. That is an increase of 7.15% from the previous week

● Hospitalizations: More than 16,000 nationwide, an 8.6% increase compared to the prior week

● Deaths: 2.4% of all deaths in the U.S. are tied to COVID-19, up 9.1% from the prior week.

Contact Henry Schwan at henry.schwan@telegram.com. Follow him on X: @henrytelegram.

This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Free COVID tests available as holidays approach. Here's what to know