Raleigh pharmacy makes it easy to get your free, at-home COVID test

Under a new federal program, anyone with health insurance or Medicaid coverage is eligible to get a home COVID test for free. In fact, each insured person can get up to eight free tests per month.

But it's not as simple as walking out of the store with a test in hand. Be prepared to pay, save your receipts and file reimbursement claims.

Health Park Pharmacy in Raleigh wants to make that easier.

“Having those tests readily available so you can test to prevent the spread to everyone else in the house is imperative,” said pharmacy owner Steve Adkins.

While pharmacies like CVS and Walgreens require people to pay out-of-pocket, save receipts and file an insurance claim, Health Park is helping customers file their claims and charging nothing up front.

The store also has a reminder, so that customers can keep home tests in stock at home.

“We are going to put them in the queue, and when they are eligible for more we will send them out a message,” Adkins said.

“We’ll probably text or email patients to say ‘Hey, we are working on your next round. If you need it, give us a thumbs up. If you don’t, just say hold it for this month.'”

So far, about 500 people have signed up.

Adkins says the supply of rapid tests is slowly improving. He's expecting hundreds more to arrive later this week.