OLYMPIA, Wash. — The Washington State Department of Health is preparing to distribute new rapid COVID-19 tests.
The department will receive and distribute the first batch of kits from the federal government in the next five to ten days.
The rapid tests can return results in as little as 15 minutes and the health department says they work best for people who are showing symptoms.
The first batch, about 149,000 kits, will be distributed to community health centers, tribal clinics and critical access hospitals.
The state anticipates receiving over 2 million more between now and December and officials are working on plans for future distributions.