Everlywell, developers of home lab tests, has announced that at-home, self-collection COVID-19 testing kits will be available to the public starting Monday, March 23rd. The company has produced an initial supply of 30,000 kits which, as Everlywell says, is a “significant increase” in the production of COVID-19 testing kits in the US.
Earlier this month, Everlywell offered a $1 million incentive for certified labs who are able to fulfill the requirements set by the FDA and Everlywell for the creation of COVID-19 diagnostic tests. It received an overwhelmingly positive result from the community and provided Everlywell the resources to build the full testing and diagnostic experience for COVID-19 in just a matter of days.
Working with multiple labs allowed Everlywell to scale infrastructure and led the company closer to its goal to have a testing and diagnosis capacity for a quarter of a million people weekly.
Tests can be requested through Everlywell’s website by persons experiencing COVID-19 symptoms. To receive an at-home test, one must complete a screening questionnaire that was created by independent telehealth partners and based on guidelines created by the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention. Once cleared, samples will be sent directly to the patient’s address to avoid further exposure. The kit contains tools and instructions for correctly collecting samples at home. It will be then shipped to partner labs through overnight delivery and results will be available in a short as 48 hours.
Should a person test positive, Everlywell will offer a telehealth consultation with an independent board-certified physician from PWNHealth. All positive patients will then be reported to all mandated federal and state reporting agencies.
One test kit will cost $135 which can be covered by participating HSA and FSA providers. Everlywell declares that they will be receiving no profit from these tests and posted a cost breakdown for transparent pricing.
Due to the high demand of testing kits, Everlywell is continuing to work rapidly to make more at-home tests available. The company is also reaching out to government officials and public health departments to find a way to make these tests free.