CVS, Walgreens limit sales of at-home COVID tests after surge in demand

(CNN) — The 2 largest pharmaceutical concatenation stores successful the United States — CVS Health and Walgreens — are limiting the fig of at-home COVID trial kits customers tin bargain owed to immense demand.

The accelerated dispersed of the omicron coronavirus variant ahead of the holidays has sparked the surge — and determination has been anecdotal grounds implicit the past week of trial shortages astatine stores crossed the country.

CVS Health acknowledged successful a connection connected Tuesday that tests whitethorn beryllium temporarily retired of banal astatine their stores.

“To guarantee equitable entree to tests some successful store and digitally, we’ve added a bounds of six trial kits per purchase,” the institution said.

CVS has much than 9,900 stores across the United States, though it announced past month that astir 10% would beryllium shut over the adjacent 3 years.

“We’re committed to providing families with extortion and bid of caput during the vacation season, and we proceed to connection entree to lab-based investigating with results disposable successful 1-2 days oregon accelerated COVID-19 testing,” the connection said.

Walgreens said it’s limiting in-store and online purchases of at-home tests to 4 each clip “due to the unthinkable request for at-home accelerated testing,” according to a connection connected Tuesday.

“We inquire that our customers delight amusement patience and knowing arsenic together, we proceed to navigate the evolving pandemic environment,” Walgreens President John Standley said.

As of Aug. 31, Walgreens had conscionable supra 9,000 stores, according to the company.

On Tuesday, the Biden administration announced the acquisition of a half-billion at-home accelerated tests, which volition beryllium made disposable adjacent period and volition scope Americans done the mail.