Biden announces ‘Test to Treat’, free antiviral treatment

Joseph Choi, The Hill via Nexstar Media Wire

Updated: Mar 2, 2022 / 06:05 AM CST

President Joe Biden delivers his first State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress at the Capitol, Tuesday, March 1, 2022, in Washington, as Vice President Kamala Harris and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi of Calif., applaud. (Sarahbeth Maney/The New York Times via AP, Pool)

(The Hill) — President Joe Biden announced during his State of the Union address on Tuesday that individuals who test positive for COVID-19 at a pharmacy will soon be able to get free antiviral COVID-19 treatments immediately after.

“We’ve ordered more pills than anyone in the world has. Pfizer is working overtime to get us a million pills this month and more than double that next month,” Biden said. “And now we’re launching the ‘Test-to-Treat’ initiative. So people can get tested at a pharmacy and if they prove positive, receive the antiviral pills on the spot at no cost.”

“If you’re immunocompromised or have some other vulnerability, we have treatments and free high-quality masks. We’re leaving no one behind or ignoring anyone’s needs as we move forward,” he added.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued emergency use authorization for Pfizer’s Paxlovid and Merck’s molnupiravir COVID-19 antiviral oral treatments for mild-to-moderate cases of SARS-CoV-2.

During his address, Biden also announced that U.S. residents would be able to order another pack of free at-home COVID-19 tests beginning next week. Earlier this week, it was reported that nearly half of the 500 million free tests made available by the Biden administration remain unclaimed.