testing

New York City declared a local state of emergency in response to the ballooning monkeypox outbreak on Monday, with Mayor Eric Adams signing the latest in a series of executive orders as efforts intensify to stem the tide. It shouldn’t come as a surprise. As of Monday, New York City has reported 1,472 monkeypox cases, a widely believed well-underreported number…

The White House says the federal website where Americans can request free COVID-19 tests will begin accepting orders on Wednesday

The reason: The variant has proved so wildly contagious that it may already be running out of people to infect, just a month and a half after it was first detected.

Gov. Charlie Baker announced Tuesday that the state has secured an order for 26 million new COVID-19 rapid antigen tests that will be prioritized for K-12 schools and child care centers over the coming months. Baker said the order was placed with iHealth, the same California-based manufacturer that provided the 2.1 million tests purchased last month and distributed to select…

Starting Saturday, private health insurers will be required to cover up to eight home COVID-19 tests per month for those on their plans.

Walmart and Kroger raised the price of Abbott’s at-home COVID-19 test kit after an agreement with the White House to sell the tests at a reduced price expired.

Southington and Farmington gave out thousands of test kits to residents that showed up to distribution sites hours early.

Gov. Ned Lamont said more than 575,000 at-home COVID-19 test kits have been delivered to towns since Friday and 1 million more arrived in the state since Sunday. In a statement, Lamont said the 1 million tests received Monday will expand distribution for this coming week. “Schools, childcare facilities, faith-based groups, vulnerable populations and those who work with them have…

President Joe Biden says the federal government will buy half a billion COVID-19 rapid test kits and distribute them free of charge to people to use at home

President Joe Biden promised to distribute hundreds of millions of free COVID-19 tests and to open more testing sites, but the stepped-up efforts will not come in time for the holidays

Public health officials worry about a coming strain on COVID testing infrastructure, which could create lines at testing sites and longer wait times for results.

The Metropolitan District Commission (MDC) will test their flood warning notification sirens in a few towns on Thursday, Oct. 28. Residents should be aware that MDC will be testing sirens located at the Goodwin Dam Hydroelectric Powerhouse in West Hartland and the Grange Hall in the Riverton section of Barkhamsted. According to MDC, each test will begin with a voice…

U.S. health officials say that most fully vaccinated Americans can skip testing for COVID-19, even if they were exposed to someone infected

At the mass testing sites, a person blows into a bag, and the air is tested in two minutes.

Hundreds of doctors, nurses, and other medical professionals fighting on the front lines of the pandemic braved the bitterly cold temperatures Friday. They stood outside for hours to get shots into the arms of residents who’ve waited for weeks for an appointment. “Finally, I’ve been so anxious to get it done,” said Russell Mercer of Hartford. As gusts whipped...

One week into 2021 and the demand for testing remains high. At least a dozen cars lined up outside the Community Health Center in New Britain on Saturday.

One week into 2021 and the demand for testing remains high. At least a dozen cars lined up outside the Community Health Center in New Britain on Saturday. Those who did show up at the testing site in New Britain said they’re adamant about keeping themselves and loved ones safe. “With this new year, I just want to prevent anything…

NBC Connecticut shares some data on turnaround times for COVID-19 tests done in the state.

Scientist Melissa Miller never knows what to expect at her lab from week to week. Since last spring, there’s been a constant shortage of testing supplies. Sometimes it’s the reagents needed to run tests, and other times it’s as simple as the plastic tips used on the pipettes, NBC News reports. “The shortages still exist,” said Miller, director of...

Federal officials say national reading and math tests used to track what U.S. students know are being postponed from next year to 2022 over concerns about whether such testing would be feasible or produce valid results amid the pandemic