DOH's COVID Rapid Tests May Last Longer Than Previously Thought

SEATTLE — If you're still holding on to the COVID-19 rapid antigen tests you got from the federal government or the Washington State Department of health, then good news! The expiration date listed on the box may be coming up, but they'll actually work for a while longer.

As The Seattle Times first reported, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration last month granted a three-month shelf-life extension to iHealth rapid antigen tests. Those are the same tests handed out by the DOH's website, http://sayyescovidhometest.org. The federal government's program also offers up the same tests.

What that means for consumers is pretty simple: the DOH says that, as long as the tests were stored safely — between 2 and 30 degrees Celsius — and remain fully intact, they can be used up to three months after the "Use by" date listed on the box. Washington Patch employees requested iHealth tests from the DOH during the first round of distribution, and a quick check of those tests shows they had "Use by" dates in late June or early July— and now will remain viable through September and early October.

If you need help making sure your tests still work, you can search for the new expiration date online.

Some brands, like Abbott BinaxNOW rapid tests, have also been granted three-month extensions, though other take-home tests may start to degrade and become less accurate after their "Use by" date.