New partnership links positive COVID-19 cases to antivirals — for a price

Image: Detect

Carbon Health and the at- home COVID-19 testing company Detect are teaming up to give customers easy access to antiviral treatments.

The Detect app connects people who test positive for COVID-19 with Carbon Health. They can make appointments for virtual or in-person visits. Paxlovid can be prescribed at that appointment and patients can pick it up the same day, which is a time saver.

The program is similar to the Biden administration's Test to Treat program, which allows people to get COVID-19 tests and antiviral drugs at health centers and long-term care facilities.

The Detect and Carbon Health partnership costs more than the federal program, which is free, so it might not be widely accessible. Each subsequent test costs an additional $49, and a detect hub costs $85. For the uninsured, virtual visits can run as high as $69 and in-person visits can run as high as $195, but Carbon Health visits are covered by many insurance companies.

The model could be used to connect more people with antivirals. Paxlovid is up in the United States, but they are still not being used as much as they could be. Some people who could qualify for the drug based on risk factors are still struggling to access prescriptions, and the increased use of at- home tests means that people are testing positive without contact with a health provider.

Hugo Barra, the chief executive officer of Detect, told The New York Times that the home tests are here.

Creating more efficient systems to encourage testing and connect people with available care are important tools to lower the health burden of the Pandemic. The US has seen a rise in Covid-19 cases as the omicron variant moves through the country.