What is the Test to Treat Initiative?
In March 2022, the Biden-Harris Administration launched a nationwide Test to Treat initiative that gives individuals an important way to rapidly access lifesaving treatments for COVID-19.
People can get tested and—if they are positive and treatments are appropriate for them—receive a prescription from a health care provider and have their prescription filled, all in one location.
These one-stop Test to Treat sites are available at hundreds of locations nationwide, including pharmacy-based clinics, federally qualified health centers (FQHCs), and long-term care facilities.
People can continue to be tested and treated by their own health care providers, who can appropriately prescribe these oral antivirals at locations where they are being distributed.
What Treatments Are Available?
While vaccination continues to provide the best protection against COVID-19, therapies are available to help treat eligible people who do get sick. The Biden-Harris Administration has invested in a medicine cabinet of COVID-19 treatments, including two oral antiviral pills—Pfizer’s and Merck’s (molnupiravir)—that can help prevent severe illness and hospitalization when taken soon after symptom onset.
All qualified health care providers can prescribe these therapeutics to patients who are at increased risk for developing severe COVID-19. As of July 6, 2022, state-licensed pharmacists
may also prescribe the oral antiviral Paxlovid to individuals who meet certain requirements.
Distribution of Oral Antiviral Pills to Pharmacy-based Clinics and Long-term Care Facilities
Effective March 7 2022, HHS began distributing oral antiviral pills directly to participating Test to Treat pharmacy-based clinics, making more treatments available to more people in more locations. ASPR also launched a program for long-term care pharmacies to directly order these antivirals to facilitate increased access for eligible long-term care residents who are at increased risk for developing severe COVID-19.
These pharmacy-based clinics and long-term care facilities join hundreds of FQHCs in our hardest-hit and highest-risk communities—these centers provide access for people to get tested, receive a prescription from a health care provider if appropriate, and have their prescription filled, all at one convenient location.
Expanding Access to COVID-19 Treatments
Expanding access to COVID-19 treatments builds upon the existing distribution of oral antivirals to thousands of locations across all states and territories. The Test to Treat initiative is part of a broader strategy to quickly connect eligible individuals who are at high risk of getting very sick from COVID-19 to appropriate treatments. The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is also connecting our nation’s veterans at VA medical centers directly to treatment. For more information regarding available COVID-19 treatments, see the
COVID-19 Therapeutics page.
Test to Treat Frequently Asked Questions
