OLYMPIA, Wash. — Editor's note: The above video on Washington state's free at-home COVID test portal originally aired January 21, 2021.
SEATTLE - Nearly 1.5 million free at-home COVID tests became available to Washington residents as the state’s online portal opened for the third time on Tuesday.
The Washington Department of Health (DOH) announced it was reopening the portal Tuesday afternoon with the availability of 1.45 million tests, which will serve about 290,000 households.
Washingtonians who have not been able to order free tests through the portal will be able to get one test kit, which contains up to five tests, while supplies last.
When the state opened the portal for the first time on Jan. 21, the 1.4 million available tests were all claimed within eight hours.
On Jan. 31, the portal opened again, serving 130,000 households.
Test kits should arrive within three business days of placing the order, according to the DOH.
With this third installment of free at-home tests, the state will have served about 740,000 households statewide with roughly 3.5 million tests, which is how many it initially promised to provide for free through the portal.
In a recent DOH briefing, Deputy Secretary for COVID Response Lacy Fehrenbach said that the state may expand the testing program beyond the initial 3.5 million tests, but that it depends on supply chain issues.
Residents can also order free testing from the federal government through its separate program, and most insurers will cover or reimburse consumers for up to eight at-home tests per month.
Those that can afford to are encouraged to buy at-home tests at local retailers and pharmacies.
The latest reopening of the online portal comes as cases continue to decrease steadily across the state, with some officials even discussing rolling back mask mandates.
Meanwhile, health officials are still urging residents to mask up in public spaces and get vaccinated against the virus as well as their booster doses.
As of Monday, more than 80% of the state’s eligible population has received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, while more than 72% are fully vaccinated.