King County purchases 400,000 additional COVID-19 test kits for residents

KING COUNTY, Wash. — King County has announced the purchase of an additional 400,000 at-home COVID-19 test kits for distribution to residents, as cases continue to surge across the state.

This brings their total purchase to 700,000 kits, following the order of 300,000 test kits announced on Dec. 28.

“We’ll be working with partners to get these kits into the community as soon as they arrive, but demand will clearly outpace the supply. As state and federal resources are distributed, we’re doing everything we can to increase testing capacity as quickly as possible,” said King County Executive Dow Constantine. “With this surge in cases, we must do all we can to expand access to testing across the region. These additional 400,000 kits will help ensure residents have the tools they need to protect themselves, their families, and the community.”

The county says they anticipate receiving additional supplies from the federal government and plan to continue purchasing kits to increase community testing capacity as needed.

Public Health – Seattle & King County will be responsible for distributing the test kits, prioritizing the areas of the county and communities that are in the most need.

With an initial 100,000 test kits expected to arrive next week, Public Health is putting plans in place to distribute the tests to community health centers, seniors centers, libraries and other community-based organizations.

Public Health says more details about where residents can access the testing kits will be shared closer to the date the initial shipment is expected to arrive.

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