Additional Free At-Home COVID Tests Available In Santa Clara Co.

SANTA CLARA COUNTY, CA — Santa Clara County opened up thousands of more appointments to distribute free at-home COVID-19 antigen tests Monday, after all 15,000 appointment slots released last Friday were quickly claimed.

Anyone who lives, works or attends school in the county can receive four iHealth COVID-19 Antigen Rapid Tests. Appointments must be made through sccfreetest.org, and people will be given a QR code to display and receive their tests. No drop-in service is available, according to the county.

An additional 7,650 appointments were available Monday, according to the county.

“We are glad to provide additional at-home tests for our community at a time when testing is still very important,” said Miguel Márquez, Chief Operations Officer for the County of Santa Clara. “When people have the opportunity to test, it allows everyone to limit the spread of the virus.”

The four sites where tests can be picked up are:

• Hellyer County Park, 985 Hellyer Ave., San José
• Martial Cottle Park, 5283 Snell Ave., San José
• Vasona County Park, 333 Blossom Hill Road, Los Gatos
• Foothill College, 12345 El Monte Road, Los Altos Hills (offers evening hours)

The county program supplements the federal government's initiative to mail four antigen tests to each household at covidtests.gov. The county's outreach teams also plan to distribute tests to disproportionately impacted communities, first responders and other essential workers.

At-home antigen tests can be used to shorten isolation or quarantine periods for those who have tested positive or been exposed to someone with COVID-19, and should be recognized as valid, health officials said.

While PCR tests are more sensitive, health officials said there is no need to follow-up with a PCR test after a positive antigen test.