LANSING —  Governor Whitmer is urging residents to take advantage of the federal government’s free COVID-19 testing program.

At-home, rapid COVID-19 tests are available for free at COVIDTests.gov, with every household eligible for four free tests that will be shipped directly to Michiganders’ homes.

Deliveries of the tests are being facilitated by the U.S. Postal Service (USPS).

“The federal program to deliver free tests to every family is simple, easy and effective,” Whitmer said. “It will remove barriers to testing including time and cost and make it easier for Michiganders to get tested. Testing is a crucial tool to help stop the spread of COVID-19 and I encourage every Michigander to claim their free COVID-19 tests at COVIDTests.gov.”

“Testing in addition to getting vaccinated and wearing masks are extremely effective tools in preventing the spread of COVID-19,” said Elizabeth Hertel, director of the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. “We are grateful for the efforts the federal government is taking to make testing easy and accessible for all Michiganders. We hope all households in our state will take advantage of this resource.”

The state says that COVID-19 testing in Michigan is at an all-time high and the at-home tests will provide the necessary tools directly to Michigan residents to limit barriers to testing access and empowering residents to take immediate action after receiving a test result.

People with health insurance can also take advantage of a new federal rule that requires health insurers to cover the cost of eight over-the-counter COVID-19 home tests per month.  Under the new rule, starting Jan. 15, private insurers will be required to cover up to eight FDA-approved over-the-counter COVID-19 tests per month for each person covered by a health plan. Insurers may, but are not required to, cover tests purchased before Jan. 15.

When to use an at-home test:

• if experiencing symptoms of COVID-19;
• if exposed to someone diagnosed with COVID-19 (ideally five days after exposure or after experiencing symptoms) prior to or after traveling or attending a large gathering.