Why COVID Tests Are Still So Scarce And Expensive — And When That Could Change

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🗓️ 12 January 2022

⏱️ 12 minutes

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Summary

Many public spaces across the country now require negative COVID-19 tests for entry. But the cost of testing can vary widely, and some say they have had to spend hundreds of dollars to purchase tests.

Adam Tanner explains some of the reasons for the drastic difference in at-home test prices. Read his piece 'How Much Should It Cost to Get Tested for COVID-19' on Consumer Reports.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	After the holidays, Christine Izzo needed to find some COVID tests. Her 20-year-old son
0:04.5	attends a university in Chicago, and her 18-year-old daughter is in a nursing program.
0:08.8	My son has a requirement for testing even to enter the campus. And my daughter has a weekly PCR
0:19.0	test requirement. No negative test, no school. That's the case for a lot of young people right now.
0:24.8	Iso herself can get tested through work. She's a nurse at Sharp Memorial Hospital in San Diego,
0:30.0	but those tests are only for her. So midweek I began searching. Many of the testing facilities
0:37.2	in her area were closed. Her local healthcare provider was only giving out tests to symptomatic
0:42.5	patients, and she couldn't find any at the store. I called a number of pharmacies, grocery stores,
0:49.5	they just were nowhere to be found. Time was running out. Her son and daughter would need to be tested
0:54.5	soon to get their results before their breaks ended. Then Iso found a COVID clinic that had both
1:00.1	PCR and rapid antigen tests available, but she'd have to pay. The rapid test was $125 out of
1:09.1	pocket paid in advance, and my daughter's PCR test with a report was $299. And I swallowed hard.
1:24.5	Consider this. The price of admission to many public spaces now likely means the price of a COVID
1:30.5	test. So why does the cost of testing vary so widely? And will the Biden administration's plans
1:37.5	finally make them easier to access? From NPR, I'm Ari Shapiro. It's Wednesday, January 12th.
1:47.6	Support for NPR and the following message come from the new Venture X card from Capital One.
1:53.2	Earn 10x miles on hotels and rental cars and 5x miles on flights when you book through Capital One
2:00.0	travel. Capital One. What's in your wallet? Terms apply. See CapitalOne.com for details.
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