September 22, 2021 10:55 AM UTC

No Excuses: Get Your Free COVID-19 Rapid Tests Now

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• by: Colorado Pols

FOX 31 reports on a score of two million rapid COVID-19 tests by Gov. Jared Polis to be distributed free to all Colorado residents just in time for cold, flu, and worse season:

It’s part of Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment’s growing program to deliver COVID-19 tests to parents or guardians to test school-aged children at home.

“You can sign up to receive eight free tests, which should arrive within 4-6 days. We also have a small backlog of people who requested tests when there weren’t any. They will be getting them automatically,” Polis said. “We’re very excited we will be able to take hundreds and thousands of new signups for this for frontline essential workers, for parents who want to test their children at home.”

“If we go through these tests in three, four, five weeks, we will absolutely look into seeing how we can continue the at-home BinaxNOW program,” Polis said. “Right now, I’m just excited to get demand going because I know if the tests are in the field, being used, people are getting results back, isolated earlier, spreading the virus less, it will save lives and help end the pandemic in Colorado.”

Early detection is crucial to limiting the spread of COVID-19 as well as seeking treatments like monoclonal antibodies which are most effective when administered within the first few days of infection. Last year, now ex-Sen. Cory Gardner told the press he expected COVID-19 tests so ubiquitous that when Coloradans “go buy your Big Gulp at 7-Eleven…you can get your COVID-19 test at the same time.” Gardner never came close to making good on that promise, and in fact dropped the ball spectacularly on COVID-19 testing for “essential” meatpacking plant workers last summer–but Gov. Polis is helping get us a little closer to Gardner’s goal.

Seriously folks, if you don’t already qualify for free regular COVID-19 testing through your job or school, get some free tests. It could be of life-saving importance to know whether that sniffle you wake up with at some point this fall is something worse.