Thread by @mattblaze

covidtests.gov seems to be semi-live (sometimes it says ordering starts tomorrow, other times it links to the order page).

It seems to be uneven about how it handles apartment buildings, with some people being rejected if someone else in the same building also ordered.

Apparently you’re supposed to be able to order 4 free rapid (antigen) tests per household. That’s definitely better than nothing, but also clearly insufficient without sustained additional test distribution.

The current 4-per-address scheme makes the most sense as a strategy for ensuring that households have tests on hand for people who develop symptoms, as opposed to as part of a routine testing regime.

Anyway, if you can’t get there via covidtests.gov , you can also try the usps page (which seems to have the same occasional “ordering starts Jan 19th” issue). special.usps.com/testkits

Anyway, kudos (and sympathy) to the people who got this up and running early and who are charged with ironing out the bugs.

In case it's not clear (because of course): I don't have anything to do with the policy, the availability of tests, or the site. I'm just trying to provide information about the site being up early and people's experiences with it.

Most of the rollout bumps seem to related to a USPS res address database that isn't accurate everywhere. But when it works, it seems to be working quite well.

My biggest complaint is that it's taken so long. I wish it had been rolled out (with regular deliveries) 18 months ago.

Every household should be getting regular test and mask deliveries for the duration of the pandemic.

But that's a separate thing from the rollout, which seems to be going (with exceptions) pretty well (and a day early).