All About CDC Approved At-Home Covid Test for Travel

CDC Approved At-Home Covid Test for Travel – Most governments around the world, including the federal government of the United States, have accepted COVID as one of the regular diseases. A few months ago, the Prime Minister of England, Boris Johnson, also mentioned several times that the UK is planning to introduce a liver COVID plan.

Similar things are also happening in the United States as the important public health departments, including the Food and Drug Administration of the United States and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, have been easing out their rules and regulations regarding COVID-19.

A few months ago, nobody was allowed to enter the United States without proper COVID protocol, including quarantine of around 14 days, and now the CDC approved a home COVID test for travel.

Previously, everyone was advised to get self-tested with the RT PCR test to enter the United States. Now, the government has changed the rules and regulations, and people are allowed to enter the United States with a home test.

Approval of At-Home COVID Test for Travel

A few weeks ago, one of the biggest public health departments in the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, lifted the mandatory RT PCR COVID test to enter the country.

In place of the RT PCR test, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggest everyone get self-tested with an at-home COVID test, which is also known as a rapid antigen test.

There are several differences between tests and rapid antigen tests. First of all, their posts are different. Secondly, their result timing is different, and the whole process is also a bit different.

 To get a PCR test, a person has to visit a nearby laboratory and wait around 24 hours to get their results. On the other hand, rapid antigen tests or at-home COVID tests are much faster in delivering results, and you can also take them at home.

Another thing you should know about the CDC-approved home COVID test for travel. You can only use at-home COVID tests approved by the Food and Drug Administration of the United States. Other tests will not be accepted at the time of entry, and you might be rejected to enter unless you take a new test.

Apart from that, here are some guidelines released by the Centers for Disease Control and prevention when it comes to adding home COVID tests to enter the United States. 

How do you Take the COVID Test At-Home for Travel?

As you are already aware, anyone can take the COVID test at home anywhere they want, with or without the supervision of any medical expert. The authenticity of the test can not be trusted if the test is not taken in front of an official or medical health professional.

Anyone can switch the sample and get negative test results. Keeping that in mind, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention added a clause in its statement that can prevent any wrong samples or test results.

First of all, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has mentioned in its guidelines that every person is only allowed to take at-home COVID tests, which have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration of the United States. Even though people are allowed to take at-home COVID tests for travel, it doesn’t mean that every at-home COVID test is acceptable by the CDC.

At the same time, you should also make sure that the test has been taken under the supervision of a telehealth service provider. The market is full of at-home COVID tests, but there are a limited number of at-home COVID test providers that also provide telehealth services.

The telehealth service provider is going to confirm the identity of the person taking the test and observe the test. The observer will make sure that the test has been taken using the right samples and confirm the results through an audio-video connection.

Lastly, the airline is going to verify the test results by contacting the supervisor and the company. These regulations are just limited to entering the United States. If you are trying to travel to any other country, then you should make sure that you are following the guidelines released by the government of that specific country.

Benefits of CDC-Approved At-Home COVID Test for Travel

The approval of an at-home COVID test for travel in the United States by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has several benefits.

It is not just going to help the travelers in the country, but it is also going to be very helpful to revive the tourism industry in the country. Most industries in the country have already revived, but the tourism industry is still struggling, and the approval of at-home COVID tests for travel is going to help them revive a little bit.

The tourism industry is not just limited to some big names. There are thousands of different small players who rely on tourists in famous tourist places. Some people might argue that if an at-home COVID test, as compared to artificial testing, is just going to save 50 or $60, it cannot revive the whole industry.

Yes, indeed, an at-home COVID test for travel is just going to save 50 or $60, but it can save a lot of time and make the whole entry into the United States very easy. A lot of people won’t travel because the entry process in the country is very difficult.

Other Countries Accepting at-home COVID Tests for Travel

You might not get surprised to know that other countries have already started accepting visitors with at-home COVID tests. Our good neighbor Canada has already announced that anyone can enter Canada with an at-home COVID test along with full vaccination status.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of the United States have not done anything new. Several other countries are accepting home COVID tests for travel, including Canada, Brazil, Argentina, and the European Union.

If you want to travel to any country, we highly suggest everyone go through the below-given list of countries where at home, COVID tests are accepted as legitimate tests to enter the country. One of the biggest benefits of the at-home COVID test for travel is that you don’t have to wait 24 to 48 hours to get the results.

At-home COVID tests are way faster when it comes to delivering the results. At the same time, you can also take an at-home COVID test at minimum prices. On the other hand, people have to spend around $130 to get their sub-tested with the RTPCR puppet test.

Which at-home COVID Tests have been Approved by the FDA?

As you’re already aware, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggest everyone take an at-home COVID test to enter the United States. Those at-home COVID tests should be approved by the Food and Drug Administration of the United States as the CDC does not believe the test results of any test which is non-FDA approved.

There is a list of different at-home COVID tests which have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration of the United States, and you can take them under the supervision of a medical professional or the observer provided by telehealth services.

We are only going to mention the aggregate cost of these tests, as they can change depending on the telehealth service provider and the medical professional. Different telehealth service providers and medical professionals charge differently, and the prices can increase or decrease depending on that.

• Abbott BinaxNOW Antigen test.
• Ellume COVID-19 Home test kit.
• Cue Covid-19 COVID test kit.
• Ihealth COVID test kit.
• Lucira COVID test kit.

Apart from the above-given list, there could be thousands of different tests which have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration of the United States. Before you take your at-home COVID test to travel to the United States, we will suggest you take a look at the test itself.

Usually, companies that have received approval from the FDA mention it clearly on their packaging. At the same time, you can also take a look at their official website. It won’t take much of your time, but it can save a lot. In case you take any wrong test, then you have to take it once again at the airport, which can cost a lot of time and money.