Vermonters can now order free rapid Covid-19 tests from the federal government.
Tests are available through the U.S. Postal Service.
Each order includes four tests. The program is limited to one order per residential address. Orders will ship in late January, according to the site.
No payment information is required — both the tests and shipping are free.
The new distribution program is separate from a state-and-federal effort to distribute free rapid tests earlier this month.
That program, called the Say Yes! Covid Test initiative, was slated to send 500,000 tests to Vermont households through partnerships with the National Institutes of Health and Amazon.
Vermonters claimed the first 350,000 tests in an initial round of orders last week. The remaining 150,000 are still to be distributed. Gov. Phil Scott’s office has not announced a date when ordering will open for those tests.
Households that ordered tests through the Say Yes! program are still eligible to order tests through the new USPS initiative.
Experts say that, while most rapid test manufacturers warn against storing test kits at freezing temperatures, the tests should still be usable after being shipped and delivered in cold weather.
—Mike Dougherty