Up to 1 million rapid at-home COVID tests expired sitting in warehouse

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As at-home coronavirus (COVID-19) tests are in high demand, officials announced up to 1 million of them expired last month sitting in a warehouse.

The kits, manufactured by Abbott Laboratories, were mostly sitting at the warehouse in Florida when cases fell and demand was low, Florida Department of Emergency Management Director Kevin Guthrie said, according to CNN.

However, cases have since skyrocketed and demand increased.

The kits then expired at the end of December, the news station reported.

At-home COVID tests have become very difficult to get over the past few weeks due to increased demand and a supply shortage.

Prior to the holidays CVS and Walgreens listed information regarding if the various at-home tests were in stock or not for individual stores. CVS now only lists that information for the Pixel by Labcorp COVID-19 PCR Test Home Collection Kit, which costs $125. Walgreens’ website suggests visiting the local store to find out.

“We’ve seen an unprecedented increase in demand for rapid OTC COVID-19 tests and are working with our suppliers to ensure customers have access to self-test kits. Some stores may experience a temporary shortage in rapid OTC testing solutions,” Walgreen said in a statement to Advance/SILive.com sister site, MassLive.

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