The self tests do not expire. (Just keep them out of heat, is what I was told, so don’t leave them in your car on a sunny day etc.)

Once you take the test, you want to drop it off the same day.

In other words, the nasal sample ‘expires’, but not the unopened test kit.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You could encourage parents at your school to utilize DC's "Test yourself" program and test their kid at home every week. That's what we intend to do. You can even get the test kits ahead of time and then you just drop them off in one of the drop boxes when you do it. It's free and really easy.

Is it as good as 100% testing of the entire population? No. But if you can get enough families willing to do it (and provide them with information on how to do it and how easy it is), then you could seriously impact the school's ability to track Covid. We are doing it for our peace of mind, but I also view it as a public service to the school community, so we know we aren't sending an asymptomatic kid to school and so we can report any positive test sooner than we might if we waited for symptoms or for the school to test (assuming we're in the 10% which I still don't know if we will be).

How do you do this? I know I can get at home covid tests at libraries/community centers, but I thought those had to be returned the same day you get the test kit. Is that what you plan to do? (I would love to test my child at home every week, just trying to figure out the logistics)

You can pick them up whenever and just keep them at home. But then you have to register the test online, do the test, and drop it off at the library by 8 pm on the same day.

This. I picked up six for our family at once, we are planning on giving our kid one every Tuesday. I’ve heard it takes 24-36 hours to get results.

Apologies if I'm just dense... do you have to test and drop off on the same day you pick up the test? Meaning if I got a test today, I'd have to register, do the test and return it today? (It would be so easy if you could pick several on one day and return them weekly on the same day you/your child took them)

^^^I mean, yeah, we all want BOTH, but we live in reality with limited resources.

And that's a purely made-up example.

Anonymous wrote:Help me clarify:

Is the idea that they catch the infected kids before or shortly after they become symptomatic (if they do) and then pull them out to quarantine before they spread to others?

If so, are the tests good enough to pick up infection before the kid starts to shed virus?

If they are, then testing designed to catch things in that narrow window sounds like a great idea.

Q1: I think that's the idea. Or if they are asymptomatic to stop them from spreading in the off chance you test them. Or at least spreading MORE than they would have.

Q2: No idea. Probably they are pretty good. Probably they miss some positives.

I think, though, that when you look at school districts that have employed near-universal, repeated testing, they haven't found many cases, and therefore these programs don't seem to stop a lot of spread. In the realm of needing to apply your limited covid-mitigation dollars where they have the most benefit, the random and limited testing that DC is doing is going to be relatively NOT cost beneficial. Other testing regimes...maybe? Idk, would you rather your school have a new HVAC system or a universal weekly testing program?

Help me clarify:

Is the idea that they catch the infected kids before or shortly after they become symptomatic (if they do) and then pull them out to quarantine before they spread to others?

If so, are the tests good enough to pick up infection before the kid starts to shed virus?

If they are, then testing designed to catch things in that narrow window sounds like a great idea.

I'm not sure if I'm wading into something already stated but the tests at the public sites (libraries) are free and you can take as many as you want. I like the idea another PP said about testing weekly and we now plan to do that.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The Binax tests are about $11 each. So if you need 500 tests/week, knowing there will be some opt-outs, I'd say if you could donate about $50k through your PTA, find a way to source that many rapid tests, and get a group of parent volunteers to help kids administer them, you could probably get through the next couple months.

You need to do binax twice over 18 hours as per the insert in Order to consider it a negative test. That makes it $22.

That’s what they cost all of us shopping at CVS.

The cost to the DCPS for a large bulk purchase would be far cheaper.

The Shield T3 testing K-12 that DCPS (and it sounds like many charters) is doing costs $35/test processed, according to their website. https://www.shieldt3.com/k12/

The cost of all this testing in the US just drives me absolutely bananas! In the UK you can pick up test kits free at any pharmacy! In Germany, you can get a five pack for about $3. What is wrong with this country??! Why can't public health get it together??

Uh....the governments are paying for those tests. They are free to you (as many tests in DC are) but it's not like the test manufacturers can make the tests, administer the tests, or analyze the tests for free. It's not like you personally are paying for the tests at schools (except through your tax dollars).

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The Binax tests are about $11 each. So if you need 500 tests/week, knowing there will be some opt-outs, I'd say if you could donate about $50k through your PTA, find a way to source that many rapid tests, and get a group of parent volunteers to help kids administer them, you could probably get through the next couple months.

You need to do binax twice over 18 hours as per the insert in Order to consider it a negative test. That makes it $22.

That’s what they cost all of us shopping at CVS.

The cost to the DCPS for a large bulk purchase would be far cheaper.

The Shield T3 testing K-12 that DCPS (and it sounds like many charters) is doing costs $35/test processed, according to their website. https://www.shieldt3.com/k12/

The cost of all this testing in the US just drives me absolutely bananas! In the UK you can pick up test kits free at any pharmacy! In Germany, you can get a five pack for about $3. What is wrong with this country??! Why can't public health get it together??

Anonymous wrote:Does anyone know what happens if you test at home snd report to the school that your kid is positive? Is that still reported to the community? Or does the school only report positives from the tests done at school?

I have to assume that they must issue a quarantine and notice no matter what. The school testing us only for asymptomatic kids. Even if you don’t test asymptomatic at home, there will be kids who develop symptoms and must test to rule out Covid.

Does anyone know what happens if you test at home snd report to the school that your kid is positive? Is that still reported to the community? Or does the school only report positives from the tests done at school?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You could encourage parents at your school to utilize DC's "Test yourself" program and test their kid at home every week. That's what we intend to do. You can even get the test kits ahead of time and then you just drop them off in one of the drop boxes when you do it. It's free and really easy.

Is it as good as 100% testing of the entire population? No. But if you can get enough families willing to do it (and provide them with information on how to do it and how easy it is), then you could seriously impact the school's ability to track Covid. We are doing it for our peace of mind, but I also view it as a public service to the school community, so we know we aren't sending an asymptomatic kid to school and so we can report any positive test sooner than we might if we waited for symptoms or for the school to test (assuming we're in the 10% which I still don't know if we will be).

How do you do this? I know I can get at home covid tests at libraries/community centers, but I thought those had to be returned the same day you get the test kit. Is that what you plan to do? (I would love to test my child at home every week, just trying to figure out the logistics)

You can pick them up whenever and just keep them at home. But then you have to register the test online, do the test, and drop it off at the library by 8 pm on the same day.

This. I picked up six for our family at once, we are planning on giving our kid one every Tuesday. I’ve heard it takes 24-36 hours to get results.

Anonymous wrote:Maybe DCPS could use some of the money being spent on lunches noone will eat to buy more tests.

Amen! Also could use covid relief dollars from
the government

Maybe DCPS could use some of the money being spent on lunches noone will eat to buy more tests.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You could encourage parents at your school to utilize DC's "Test yourself" program and test their kid at home every week. That's what we intend to do. You can even get the test kits ahead of time and then you just drop them off in one of the drop boxes when you do it. It's free and really easy.

Is it as good as 100% testing of the entire population? No. But if you can get enough families willing to do it (and provide them with information on how to do it and how easy it is), then you could seriously impact the school's ability to track Covid. We are doing it for our peace of mind, but I also view it as a public service to the school community, so we know we aren't sending an asymptomatic kid to school and so we can report any positive test sooner than we might if we waited for symptoms or for the school to test (assuming we're in the 10% which I still don't know if we will be).

How do you do this? I know I can get at home covid tests at libraries/community centers, but I thought those had to be returned the same day you get the test kit. Is that what you plan to do? (I would love to test my child at home every week, just trying to figure out the logistics)

You can pick them up whenever and just keep them at home. But then you have to register the test online, do the test, and drop it off at the library by 8 pm on the same day.

DC also just announced a bunch of additional pickup sites for these tests (rec centers, in addition to libraries).

These 11 new sites are in addition to the 16 DC Public Library sites that are listed on testyourself.dc.gov.

Ward 3

Palisades Recreation Center (5200 Sherier Pl NW) – opens on Monday, August 30

Ward 4

Lamond Recreation Center (20 Tuckerman St NE) – opens on Monday, August 30

Ward 5

Trinidad Recreation Center (1310 Childress St NE) – opens on Monday, August 30
Edgewood Recreation Center (301 Franklin Street, NE) – opens on Monday, August 30
Turkey Thicket Recreation Center (1100 Michigan Ave NE) – opens on Monday, August 30

Ward 6

Arthur Capper Community Center (1000 5th St SE) – opens on Monday, August 30
Rosedale Recreation Center (1701 Gales St NE) – opens on Monday, August 30
Southwest Library (900 Wesley Pl SW) – opens on Wednesday, September 1
DC Health (899 N Capitol St NE) – opens on Wednesday, September 1

Ward 8

Barry Farm Recreation Center (1230 Sumner Rd SE) – opens on Monday, August 30
Fort Stanton Recreation Center (1812 Erie Street, SE) – opens on Wednesday, September 1

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The Binax tests are about $11 each. So if you need 500 tests/week, knowing there will be some opt-outs, I'd say if you could donate about $50k through your PTA, find a way to source that many rapid tests, and get a group of parent volunteers to help kids administer them, you could probably get through the next couple months.

You need to do binax twice over 18 hours as per the insert in Order to consider it a negative test. That makes it $22.

Even if you tested them once a week and sent any positives for PCR you would probably cut transmission to almost nil.