Some in southwest Illinois eligible to receive free COVID-19 rapid tests
The Illinois Department of Public Health on Friday announced that 225,000 rapid COVID-19 tests would be distributed for free to 14 counties most vulnerable to continued spread of the virus.
St. Clair and Madison counties are included.
Residents in the qualifying counties can visit AccessCovidTests.org to sign up for home delivery of the test kits, which will be distributed on a first-come-first-serve basis. Each household that places an order will receive five tests within a week or two, according to a release.
“Testing is still a critical component for slowing transmission of COVID-19 and helping prevent further infections,” said IDPH Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike. “With readily available at-home testing, individuals can find out very quickly if they are positive and take action to isolate for five days while alerting those with whom they had close contact that they should also test. Readily available tests can help us chart a course for the new normal and help us learn how to coexist with COVID-19.”
Rapid, self-administered testing has potential to disrupt the spread of COVID-19 that occurs when people are infected, but don’t yet have symptoms, Ezike said.
The free COVID-19 tests have been given emergency use authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and can be used at home. Tests require a quick swab inside each nostril and results can be read in just minutes.
The health department determined the eligible counties for the program based on a Social Vulnerability Index, which, according to the release, considers 14 social factors. They include Cook, DuPage, Henry, Jackson, Jefferson, Kankakee, Lake, Macon, Madison, Marion, Peoria, St. Clair, Will, and Winnebago counties.
Project ACT is a new direct-to-consumer mail order program in partnership with the Rockefeller Foundation, health care technology company CareEvolation, test manufacture iHealth Labs, Inc., and logistics provider and distribution leader Amazon.com.
