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At-home COVID-19 tests. (Photo Illustration by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

Which COVID test should you take, and how do you get reimbursed?

COVID-19 testing somehow gets more confusing by the day. Here's an explainer on the different tests available, when they should be used, and how to get reimbursed for buying them.

An ICU floor at UMass Memorial Hospital in Worcester. (Erin Clark/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)

Nurses union urges state to declare state of emergency

State changes COVID reporting to distinguish between primary and incidental hospital cases

Tufts Medical Center will close pediatric beds to boost adult capacity

Vaccine Coverage

Christa Ellis lifts weights at Healthworks on Stuart Street. (Robin Lubbock/WBUR)

Some gym owners are sweating over Boston's vaccine mandate

Boston's vaccine mandate for indoor dining and workouts starts Saturday

Boston restaurant owner sees both sides, but supports the city's vaccine mandate

State opens access to digital vaccine cards

Trash is a burning question with mixed answers in some Mass. towns

More Health News

A screen shot of the COVID-19 SMART Health Card website offered by the state.

How to get your vaccination QR code onto your phone

Massachusetts gives the vaccinated a new option to access their COVID vaccination record electronically, and it comes with a QR code.

Epidemiologists warn impacts of omicron could linger 'if you declare victory too quickly'

“Epidemics are symmetrical: just as many people get infected on the downside as the upside,” said Justin Lessler, an epidemiologist who is part of the COVID-19 Scenario Modeling Hub.

'Health care heroes really got the shaft': Some workers with COVID had to fight for pay

Employers are required under state law to file workers' compensation claims, but COVID opened up a big gray area. Companies and insurers are taking advantage of the complexity.

Massachusetts to provide at-home tests for schools

The new program will allow school health staff to spend more time and resources identifying symptomatic people and focusing on other aspects of COVID-19 management, the Department of Elementary and...

Education

Jan 18, 2022

Boxes of iHealth COVID-19 rapid test kits. (Jay L. Clendenin/The Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

With limited lead time, Mass. private health insurers create new COVID-19 test reimbursement systems

The federal government says it’s "strongly incentivizing" insurers to arrange a system where people can get tests with no out-of-pocket costs. But that isn't likely to happen right away in...

Health

Jan 16, 2022

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu held a press conference in City Hall on Dec. 20, 2021, to discuss the city's response to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. She announced a vaccine mandate to enter businesses in Boston. (Pat Greenhouse/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)

Restaurants in Boston and beyond navigate new proof-of-vaccination requirements to dine in

Officials like Boston Mayor Michelle Wu say the new rules will keep people safe and encourage the unvaccinated to get their shots. Many restaurant owners are on board. But they...

Business

Jan 16, 2022

Health and Human Services Secretary Marylou Sudders. (Sam Doran/SHNS)

Department of Public Health giving hospitals flexibility to ensure beds will be available

Citing a "critical staffing shortage" that has contributed to the loss of around 700 hospital beds since the start of 2021, the Department of Public Health on Friday issued a...

Health

Jan 15, 2022

A COVID-19 test swab in a vial. (Jesse Costa/WBUR)

Massachusetts closes 3 unlicensed COVID-19 testing sites

The state Department of Public Health on Thursday issued cease-and-desist orders to testing sites in Worcester, Needham and Dartmouth, all operated by the Center for COVID Control.

Local Coverage

Jan 14, 2022

Rona Tsantinis-Roy stands behind the counter at Athens Pizza, a pizza shop in Brimfield her father owned for many years. Tsantinis-Roy‘s father Tony Tsantinis died of COVID-19 last month, when efforts to find space at a hospital that could offer him a higher level of care to treat him could not be found. (Jesse Costa/WBUR)

As health care breaks down in Massachusetts, patients die waiting for care

Rona Tsantinis-Roy says doctors suggested her father might have survived if he’d been transferred to a larger hospital. Typically, that’s what happens when a patient at a community hospital needs...

Health

04:55Jan 14, 2022

Boston's vaccine mandate takes effect Saturday, and patrons entering restaurants, gyms, theaters and other indoor venues will be required to show proof of vaccination. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

Arts venues prepare for Boston's new vaccine mandate to take effect

The new requirement in Boston to show proof of vaccination is a welcome development to many heads of arts and culture venues.

Arts & Culture

Jan 14, 2022

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Which COVID test should you take, and how do you get reimbursed?

Nurses union urges state to declare state of emergency

State changes COVID reporting to distinguish between primary and incidental hospital cases

Tufts Medical Center will close pediatric beds to boost adult capacity

Some gym owners are sweating over Boston's vaccine mandate

Boston's vaccine mandate for indoor dining and workouts starts Saturday

Boston restaurant owner sees both sides, but supports the city's vaccine mandate

State opens access to digital vaccine cards

Trash is a burning question with mixed answers in some Mass. towns

How to get your vaccination QR code onto your phone

Epidemiologists warn impacts of omicron could linger 'if you declare victory too quickly'

'Health care heroes really got the shaft': Some workers with COVID had to fight for pay

Massachusetts to provide at-home tests for schools

With limited lead time, Mass. private health insurers create new COVID-19 test reimbursement systems

Restaurants in Boston and beyond navigate new proof-of-vaccination requirements to dine in

Department of Public Health giving hospitals flexibility to ensure beds will be available

Massachusetts closes 3 unlicensed COVID-19 testing sites

As health care breaks down in Massachusetts, patients die waiting for care

Arts venues prepare for Boston's new vaccine mandate to take effect