The US is offering another round of free Covid tests through the mail

Just in time for the holidays, the Biden administration is offering Americans a new round of free at-home coronavirus tests through the mail.

The government revived the dormant program in September, announcing at the time that households could order four free tests through a federal website. covidtests.gov. From Monday, households can order four additional tests – or eight tests if they did not order one in the previous round.

Hospitalizations and deaths from Covid-19 are far below levels during the worst periods of the pandemic, which has claimed the lives of more than 1.1 million people in the United States.

The number of hospital admissions of patients with Covid increased this summer, but started to fall slightly in September and has remained fairly stable in recent weeks. About 16,000 people were admitted to hospitals with the virus in the week ending Nov. 11, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Private insurers were previously required to cover up to eight at-home tests per month, but that requirement ended in May with the expiration of the coronavirus public health emergency, making it harder for many Americans to get tests without the bill to pay.

Separate from the Postal Service program, the federal Department of Health and Human Services says it is providing more than four million tests per week to long-term care facilities, schools, community health centers and food banks.