Free Covid Home Test program resuming Monday

[sam_gordon]

^ annnnd this sort of thing is why I have wipes in my car & purse and wipe whatever public surfaces my hands touch.
I don't need to see gross to suspect other humans have been gross in or around my orbit, it is a given

IMO, its easier to not think about it. A whole hell of a lot less stress.

 

[kdonnel]

IMO, its easier to not think about it. A whole hell of a lot less stress.

My dad said the same thing about restaurants.

He was a food safety inspector for the dining facilities on an Army base. Based on what he knew was going on in those kitchens and knowing the same things were going on in civilian restaurants, he said he would never be able to eat out if he thought about it.

He just made sure to be seated where he could not see into the kitchen and tried to remain blissfully unaware.

I do remember us having to walk out of a restaurant once because he caught a glimpse of the kitchen through a swinging door that was held open. I'm not sure what he saw in that quick glimpse but it was enough that he had us get up and leave before our food was brought out.

 

[Christine]

Got the email mine shipped, should arrive Thursday. Mine are shipping from Cleveland Ohio.

Same here--mine are coming from Cleveland with a delivery of Thursday.

 

[leahgoogle]

That is fine to do in your own home. But why would it be ok to put a dog in a shopping cart/on a table/on furniture in public spaces?

It may not be, it just doesn't bother me if people do. The stores should definitely make rules either way.

 

[leahgoogle]

May I introduce you to Restorative Justice? Lol. That's how many schools are "dealing" with very serious issues these days.

Spoiler Alert: It's not working.

I had to look up Restorative Justice. Wow....it is definitely not working!

 

[RedHead0186]

Mine just arrived. The extended expiration date is 2/24......not as long as I was hoping since we have others that also expire in Feb

Wow, that's not very long, especially if that's the extended expiration date! I have others (that I purchased right before insurance stopped covering them) that expire around the same time. Was hoping these free ones would last a little longer so I'd be 'covered' for a while . . .

 

[RedHead0186]

So then the dog's butt and paw germs would be on the bag, what's the difference?
I'm just sick of entitled dog owners thinking they should be able to take them anywhere,
and the bar table thing is disgusting!

Ugh, hate when I see dogs in bars. Growing up with dogs, I know how much dog hair can spread/fly through the air/etc. I don't want dog hair on my food/in my drink. (And I love dogs, I just don't think eating/drinking establishments are the place for them.)

 

[lynxstch]

Ordered ours the first day, and they came today.

 

[Meriweather]

Wow, that's not very long, especially if that's the extended expiration date! I have others (that I purchased right before insurance stopped covering them) that expire around the same time. Was hoping these free ones would last a little longer so I'd be 'covered' for a while . . .

Yes we had a lot more that also expire in Feb....we have trips coming, but sure if there are that many.

 

[Pink Partridge]

Got ours today!

All tests mailed to us expired 6/23.

Although instructed in the past to throw expired tests away, they are now ok to use (per the government).

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Got ours today!

All tests mailed to us expired 6/23.

Although instructed in the past to throw expired tests away, they are now ok to use (per the government).

I believe, if the expiration date has been extended, this is true. We still had a couple of tests from the original distribution that had the expiration date extended twice, but they are no longer on the list, so we threw them away. The "new" tests we got expired 1/23, but have been extended to 1/24.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Although instructed in the past to throw expired tests away, they are now ok to use (per the government).

It's been a very long time relatively speaking about expiration dates. It's not a blanket "if the test is expired you can use it" It's ONLY if the test has been verified by the manufacturer to produce valid results past the initial expiration date. You need to confirm your tests via the FDA's website.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

I believe, if the expiration date has been extended, this is true. We still had a couple of tests from the original distribution that had the expiration date extended twice, but they are no longer on the list, so we threw them away. The "new" tests we got expired 1/23, but have been extended to 1/24.

Yeah I've got some BinaxNow tests that were extended (based on having a 24 month shelf life now IIRC) and those just went over the extended expiration date and thus are not good and I've checked the list and they were not further extended. These were tests I bought August 2022 when my husband had covid.

 

[bcla]

Just got it today. Mine are the Abott BinaxNOW test, which many consider to be the gold standard for antigen tests. Expiration date on the box was last July, but I checked with the FDA and they've approved expiration for an additional 7 months.

https://www.fda.gov/media/158003/download

I'm feeling some symptoms (could just be allergies after recent rain) so I used one and it's negative. I remember once we were feeling a little bit off and my kid and I both got tested at a county testing site where they used the BinaxNOW test.

 

[RedHead0186]

Just got it today. Mine are the Abott BinaxNOW test, which many consider to be the gold standard for antigen tests. Expiration date on the box was last July, but I checked with the FDA and they've approved expiration for an additional 7 months.

https://www.fda.gov/media/158003/download

I'm feeling some symptoms (could just be allergies after recent rain) so I used one and it's negative. I remember once we were feeling a little bit off and my kid and I both got tested at a county testing site where they used the BinaxNOW test.

FYI, they are saying with the newer variants that home tests don't always pick up infection right away (even the 'gold standard' tests like BinaxNOW). They recommend serial testing (testing a couple of days in a row) to confirm infection (or not). That's actually how those home tests were originally designed to be used (test one, then test again a couple days later to confirm the result). That's why there's two in a pack.

Just letting you know that one negative result doesn't mean you're COVID-free. Either way, hope you feel better soon!

 

[LuvOrlando]

Wow, that's not very long, especially if that's the extended expiration date! I have others (that I purchased right before insurance stopped covering them) that expire around the same time. Was hoping these free ones would last a little longer so I'd be 'covered' for a while . . .

Maybe this is a blessing in disguise, with a close expiration date people might be more inclined to use it during the holidays instead of hoarding it

 

[bcla]

It's been a very long time relatively speaking about expiration dates. It's not a blanket "if the test is expired you can use it" It's ONLY if the test has been verified by the manufacturer to produce valid results past the initial expiration date. You need to confirm your tests via the FDA's website.

Expiration dates tend to be conservative anyways.

I was dealing with wildfire smoke around here and we had some older N95 masks and were worried about them being beyond their expiration dates. However, the CDC apparently approved them for 5 years from the manufacturing date. But they have the manufacturing date and not necessarily an expiration date, but the box said they expired after 2 years. My understanding is that the mask material itself is pretty stable, but the big worry is about the elastic possibly breaking and then not sealing properly.

 

[RedHead0186]

Maybe this is a blessing in disguise, with a close expiration date people might be more inclined to use it during the holidays instead of hoarding it

Good point!

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Expiration dates tend to be conservative anyways.

I was dealing with wildfire smoke around here and we had some older N95 masks and were worried about them being beyond their expiration dates. However, the CDC apparently approved them for 5 years from the manufacturing date. But they have the manufacturing date and not necessarily an expiration date, but the box said they expired after 2 years. My understanding is that the mask material itself is pretty stable, but the big worry is about the elastic possibly breaking and then not sealing properly.

Yeah I'm only going to talk about covid tests, we're not talking about masks. The expiration dates are based on a manufacturer's testing and not all tests out there have long expiration dates (some only have several months for example). Best to stick with what we have been advised which is look for your test on the list if the date has passed, if it's not there don't use the test as it can increase inaccurate results.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Maybe this is a blessing in disguise, with a close expiration date people might be more inclined to use it during the holidays instead of hoarding it

That was what I had heard anyhow when this was announced. That it was intended to get people through 2023.