Here are two convenient and low-hassle ways to satisfy the U.S. re-entry Covid test requirement.
Although some destinations around the world are relaxing entry requirements for fully-vaccinated visitors, the United States still requires a negative Covid-19 test for anyone (vaccinated or not) returning to the country on an international flight.
A rapid Covid test can be relatively expensive to purchase overseas. It may also be inconvenient to obtain, depending on where you’ll be traveling. Fortunately, the CDC recently expanded the rules to include home tests you bring with you, provided they meet certain criteria.
Here’s a look at two in particular: BinaxNow COVID-19 Ag Card Home Test and Ellume COVID-19 test.
1. BinaxNow COVID-19 Ag Card Home Test
A smartphone or computer with a camera and internet access is the only tech needed. You take the test within three days of your flight, at your convenience. (A Saturday departure means you can take the test as early as Wednesday.) Your result arrives within 20 minutes, and the official result is sent to the Navica app (more on that later) in as soon as 15 minutes.
Here’s an overview of the process:
1. Order a kit online and receive it via FedEx.
2. Download the Navica app on your phone and set up an account.
3. Take the video-monitored test.
4. Go through the guided session.
5. Prepare and take the test.
6. Receive your result via the Navica app.
And here’s an in-depth description of each step:
1. Order a kit online and receive it via FedEx.
Order a kit by answering the series of questions related to “obtain[ing] pre-departure COVID-19 test results for re-entry into the United States as mandated by the CDC.” The cost is $150 for six tests.
The kits need to be prescribed by a physician; based on your answers, a doctor employed by Abbott (the test manufacturer) will do it the same day. Kits are sent via FedEx for delivery the next day.
2. Download the Navica app on your phone and set up an account.
I recommend doing before leaving home but you can do it overseas, too. You need the Navica app to receive and display your test results. The video interaction is performed on the eMed.com site (more on this later).
3. Take the video-monitored test.
Go to eMed.com. Click on “Start Test.” You’ll be prompted to log in to your Navica account. Complete the questionnaire. You’ll be prompted to start the “Guided Session.”
4. Go through the guided session.
An eMed employee will come online (you won’t see this person but he/she will see your camera). Via your camera, eMed will:
-Have you provide/scan the QR code from your Covid test box
-View/confirm your ID (passport, state-issued drivers license/ID)
-Monitor all of your movements during the process. (This may be easier to do on a smartphone than a laptop.)
5. Prepare and take the test.
The eMed representative will have you open various items from the box.
Specifically, you will:
-Open the card and lay it on a flat surface.
-Place six drops of solution in the small hole.
-Stick the swab on the big hole and turn three times.
-Place the swab up both nostrils and turn six times.
-Place the swab inside the flap with the swab exposed to the large hole.
-Close the card.
6. Receive your result via the Navica app.
After you close the card, a 20-minute timer starts and the eMed representative exits. (You can step away from your phone or computer now, too.) When the 20-minute timer goes off, click on the button that summons another eMed representative to go over your result.
If you test negative, you’ll see a single red line (control). If you test positive, you’ll see two red lines (control plus sample).
The eMed representative will email your test results to you as well as to your Navica account. The result displayed in the app is the official one that you use to reenter the U.S.; you may have to show it not only to U.S. Immigration but also to departure airport personnel.
2. Ellume COVID-19 Home Test
Delta is now selling Ellume COVID-19 Home Tests on Delta.com. Priced at $50 each, the tests can be shipped to your home or picked up locally, and are offered in partnership with AZOVA for the mandatory video observation component.
The process is almost identical to that described above for BinaxNow: You can schedule your video appointment before you leave the country, take the test from anywhere, and receive validated results immediately.
Twist’s Take: A U.S. reentry test can be difficult to find and expensive to purchase overseas. Consider bringing a BinaxNow or Ellume home test with you instead.
