Can you use expired Covid tests? What to know as hospitalizations rise and new variants spread

Some expired Covid tests are safe to use if the FDA says they have extended expiration dates.

As Covid cases surge again in the U.S., Americans are digging out unused at-home tests that they stashed earlier in the pandemic.The Food and Drug Administration has extended the expiration dates of many popular at-home test products, which means some of your old kits may still be safe to use.

Before buying new at-home tests, it wouldn’t hurt to check if any expired ones sitting in your medicine cabinet are still safe to use. Here’s a walkthrough for how to do that, and everything else you need to know about these tests.The FDA website lists Covid test brands alphabetically in a table. Or, you can use a search box to find your test directly.

The FDA extends expiration dates when a manufacturer provides data showing that its test’s shelf life is longer than what was known when the agency first approved the product. The FDA last week also said “existing tests used to detect and medications used to treat COVID-19 continue to be effective” with another omicron subvariant called BA.2.86, which has been detected in very small numbers across the U.S.

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