At-home COVID tests: Where to find them, online and in the Treasure Valley
At-home coronavirus testing kits are becoming the new hot commodity as the omicron variant continues to rapidly spread throughout the United States.
But they’re also quickly becoming scarce in Idaho as COVID-19 cases once again surge in the Gem State. The state recorded 2,316 new positive cases Tuesday, raising the seven-day average to 1,251 cases.
The Idaho Department of Health and Welfare announced on Jan. 5 that it had run out of at-home COVID-19 tests that could originally be ordered through the department’s 2-1-1 CareLine number and will not provide any further tests to the state.
But as of Saturday, those with health insurance will be able to buy up to eight at-home tests per month and have the cost covered by insurance following a move by the Biden administration to require private health insurers to provide at-home tests for those on their plans.
If you’re needing a test now, here are some locations in the Treasure Valley as well as online with COVID-19 tests. Pricing and stock levels may change.
This list will be updated by the Idaho Statesman as more information becomes available. Tests can be purchased by clicking the hyperlink for the website.
Amazon: Amazon provides several different testing kits, but most don’t ship for several weeks.
The top-rated testing kit, iHealth, sells packs of two tests for $19.80 but says it will take two to three weeks to ship. Other options on Amazon include On/Go ($24.88 for two tests) and Lucira ($89 for one test).
Costco: Costco offers a travel-approved (Hawaii and Bermuda) saliva PCR test kit through a partnership with Azova. Customers must first purchase the test kit through Azova for $89.99 before selecting a local Costco pharmacy location for pickup.
The test comes with an online video observation by a medical professional. For travel, you must schedule an appointment to take the test under online observation approximately 72 hours before traveling. Full instructions can be found here.
Drip Hydration: A slightly different form of the at-home test, Drip Hydration takes appointments online and sends a medical professional to your home to administer the test. The organization offers rapid antigen tests and standard PCR tests for $249 and can provide results within 15 minutes for the antigen test and 1-2 days for the PCR test.
Optum Store: Optum Store offers multiple tests but the only tests currently available for online order are the On/Go two-test kit for $23.99, BimaxNOW with eMed telehealth services for $69.99 and the Lucira kit for $75.
Due to a high demand for all three products, Optum Store is expecting deliveries to ship in four to five days.
Walgreens/Walmart: Walgreens offers tests online and in stores. However, they sell out quickly. Kits from the pharmacy chain sell from as low as $9.99 to $124.99, but only the BinaxNOW kit ($23.99) is available for online shipping. As of Wednesday, all other tests were sold out online, but call or visit your local pharmacy about in-store test availability.
Walmart also offers the BinaxNOW kit for $19.88, as well as the On/Go antigen self-test kit for $29.99. The Walmarts at 7319 W. State St. in Garden City and 5875 E. Franklin Road in Nampa had tests available as of late Wednesday afternoon.
