In the month of March, the Department of Defense (DoD), in coordination with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), awarded contract modifications to Abbott Rapid Dx North America, LLC (Orlando, Florida) and iHealth Labs Inc. (Sunnyvale, California), purchasing an additional 176.8 million over-the-counter COVID-19 test kits. This effort supports the president’s plan to deliver one billion free at-home COVID-19 tests to the nation in response to the Omicron variant.
The DoD’s Joint Program Executive Office for Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Defense (JPEO-CBRND) led this effort in partnership with DoD’s Defense Assisted Acquisition Cell (DA2), Army Contracting Command, and the HHS Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR). The procurement was funded through the American Rescue Plan Act to supply critical medical resources to the nation.