Covid home testing

[AndyinPA]

Today, the two sets of four tests finally came. I had pretty much forgotten all about them until I got a notice in my email.

My daughter's whole office seems to be coming down with it. She has been testing every day. They have been very careful and have danced around Covid for the last two plus years. It looks as if their luck has run out.

We got back from the Great Lakes a week ago. One of our friends on the cruise tested positive today, but she has to have gotten it locally since she returned home. She has no idea where. The same was true last year when she got it the first time.

And, as much as is possible, we think we know where we might have gotten Covid. It seems as if it could have been picking up a meal at a local restaurant the day of return from the trip in August. The timing is right, and it would explain why our granddaughter and daughter did not get it. Also, the tight pickup area has always bothered us.

[northland10]

Oh, I may have more coming. I remember ordering them, I think, and then never heard again and forgot. With the travel and actually having it, I am down to one though my insurance would cover more of I want to get them from the store.

[p0rtia]

Oh, I may have more coming. I remember ordering them, I think, and then never heard again and forgot. With the travel and actually having it, I am down to one though my insurance would cover more of I want to get them from the store.

Yeah, I got two boxes in the mail yesterday. Thought the two kits I received last month were it. I am well stocked.

[pipistrelle]

When I ordered the last right before the deadline, I got them within a week. They must have a stockpile nearby.

[MN-Skeptic]

When the forum here mentioned the free tests program expiring, I signed up for the two remaining sets I qualified for. They came within two weeks. Even better, they were the BinaxNOW tests which I trust. Including the one box I already had bought on my own but not used, I have NINE boxes of tests, each containing two tests. 18 tests! Oh my. I have no excuse for not testing now, do I?

[Kriselda Gray]

We've got 16 tests here, but only my caretaker has ever been exposed and he tested negative. None of us have gotten any symptoms, either. Well, that's not quite right. I've had symptoms "of COVID" ongoing since about 2 or 3 months before I ever even heard of COVID, and before it came to our shores. (I put "of COVID" in quotes because I obviously didn't come down with it before it got here, so whatever I'm having symptoms of is something else entirely.)

I've lately been having problems with my blood oxygen levels running low and tend to drift in and out of sleep most days (but can't get much sleep at night, though I doubt that's really related - my daytime tiredness is a problem I've had before even when I was sleeping ok at night.) My doctor's doing some blood and nasal panels checking for everything from bacteria and viruses (including COVID, just in case i've gotten it along with whatever else is going on) to blood clots.

Of course, if this goes they way it usually does when my docs decide that maybe there's something semi-serious wrong with me, we'll do a bunch of tests and not find a damn thing. ::sigh::

Ah well, we shall see.

[Lani]

I just had 3 tests - 2 PCR & one Binax - in less 3 days. My previous flu/whatever returned yesterday. More accurately, I never got over it. Just felt a little less sick, and then - wammo! More tests tomorrow & the day after.

I asked why the clinic had much testing, and the staff said they have a large number of covid patients daily. They don't see any waning of covid, and they think it's possible that the home tests/rapid tests are not as accurate as the PCR for the new variations.

[AndyinPA]

I just had 3 tests - 2 PCR & one Binax - in less 3 days. My previous flu/whatever returned yesterday. More accurately, I never got over it. Just felt a little less sick, and then - wammo! More tests tomorrow & the day after.

I asked why the clinic had much testing, and the staff said they have a large number of covid patients daily. They don't see any waning of covid, and they think it's possible that the home tests/rapid tests are not as accurate as the PCR for the new variations.

That makes some sense. One of our travel buddies has felt bad for a number of days. She tested negative at home three times; she went in for a PCR test yesterday. It came back last night positive. Her second case, and she's had heart problems since the first one a year ago.

[FiveAcres]

We were vacationing in California when my partner developed allergy symptoms. Then he slept twelve hours in one night. While waiting for him to wake up, I found a test site which administered a PCR and a rapid test that morning. He was informed by text that he was positive ninety minutes later. I had some GI upset and was 99.5% certain that I was also positive.

We found a rental car and drove home to Colorado, taking it fairly slow and masking at truck stops and hotels. (I80 is now my favorite Interstate.) A friend dropped off some groceries and some test kits before we arrived, and another friend dropped off our Boston Terrier whom she had been boarding. I tested positive with the test kit an hour after we arrived home.

Our symptoms were pretty much like a standard cold with a touch of flu symptoms. I felt more tired than usual for a week after my other symptoms were gone. Neither of us lost our sense of smell or taste, though we didn't have much of an appetite during the trip home.

[Foggy]

So are you negative now, FiveAcres?

[FiveAcres]

So are you negative now, FiveAcres?

Yes. I tested negative last Wednesday before I took Bandit to dog agility class. My partner also tested negative. We are symptom free now.

[Foggy]

[MN-Skeptic]

Woohoo!

[AndyinPA]

Done!

Thanks.

[MN-Skeptic]

I'm not sure which of these threads to put this article in, but it totally sucks that when the U.S. still has a current 7-day average of 564 deaths from Covid, the national health emergency will end in May. People still need to test, people still need to get vaccinated, and people still need to have effective treatments.

An article from CNN listing what happens when the health emergency designation ends in May -

hese benefits will disappear when Biden ends the Covid national and public health emergencies in May

There's just too much information at the link to try to quote a bit of it, so read the article.

Edited to add -

Dumb question. When they say "current 7-day average" do they mean that 564 people are dying each day or each 7-days?

[SamsOvar]

It's interesting that your friend from the Great Lakes cruise tested positive, and you're right, it's likely that she contracted the virus locally rather than from the cruise itself. It's also concerning that you suspect you might have picked up the virus from a local restaurant. It just goes to show how easily this virus can spread and how important it is to take all the necessary precautions.

I hope that everyone who has come down with the virus is able to recover quickly and easily. And remember, it's always better to err on the side of caution and be proactive in protecting yourself and others. Stay safe, and don't hesitate to reach out to ibgportland.com if you need any support or resources.

[Michael in Houston]

I'm not sure which of these threads to put this article in, but it totally sucks that when the U.S. still has a current 7-day average of 564 deaths from Covid, the national health emergency will end in May. People still need to test, people still need to get vaccinated, and people still need to have effective treatments.

An article from CNN listing what happens when the health emergency designation ends in May -

hese benefits will disappear when Biden ends the Covid national and public health emergencies in May

There's just too much information at the link to try to quote a bit of it, so read the article.

Edited to add -

Dumb question. When they say "current 7-day average" do they mean that 564 people are dying each day or each 7-days?

The 564 is the average of how many people died per day over the preceding 7 days.

[Michael in Houston]

My youngest brother's wife was recently exposed to COVID and did a home test. Her test came back positive but she had -0- symptoms. She is fully vaccinated. Interestingly, my brother (vaccinated) also tested and never caught it. His conclusion is that being fully vaccinated is beneficial.

[Lani]

I'm not sure which of these threads to put this article in, but it totally sucks that when the U.S. still has a current 7-day average of 564 deaths from Covid, the national health emergency will end in May. People still need to test, people still need to get vaccinated, and people still need to have effective treatments.

An article from CNN listing what happens when the health emergency designation ends in May -

hese benefits will disappear when Biden ends the Covid national and public health emergencies in May

The 564 is the average of how many people died per day over the preceding 7 days.

I agree. Now most people don't take care anymore. There is new data about young people who had mild covid or tested positive without illness and now have heart or other organ problems.

[AndyinPA]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2 ... mail-usps/

Just as a summer covid wave shows signs of receding, the Biden administration announced Wednesday that it is reviving a program to mail free rapid coronavirus tests to Americans.

Starting Sept. 25, people can request four free tests per household through covidtests.gov. Officials say the tests are able to detect the latest variants and are intended to be used through the end of the year.

The return of the free testing program comes after Americans navigated the latest uptick in covid cases with free testing no longer widely available. The largest insurance companies stopped reimbursing the costs of retail at-home testing once the requirement to do so ended with the public health emergency in May. The Biden administration stopped mailing free tests in June.

[Slim Cognito]

I haven't checked the expiration dates on the four tests we have here. I guess I should do that.

[raison de arizona]

I haven't checked the expiration dates on the four tests we have here. I guess I should do that.

If they are expired, look them up on the interwebs before you bin them. We had a batch that they extended the expiration on for another six months past what was printed on the box.

[AndyinPA]

I haven't checked the expiration dates on the four tests we have here. I guess I should do that.

I think they are considered good for at least a year past their expiration date.

I think this page is supposed to speak to this or have a link to find more information.

https://www.fda.gov/medical-devices/cov ... stics-euas

Note: I say I think.

[raison de arizona]

Here's the one I was thinking of:
https://www.fda.gov/medical-devices/cor ... tests#list

[neonzx]

I haven't checked the expiration dates on the four tests we have here. I guess I should do that.

I think they are considered good for at least a year past their expiration date.

I think this page is supposed to speak to this or have a link to find more information.

https://www.fda.gov/medical-devices/cov ... stics-euas

Note: I say I think.

Yabbut, do those older tests detect the latest strain that has sweep the country? I still have two of the older test kits.