Here is how getting rapid tests works for me: I go online, and fill out a form saying that I’m a resident of Colorado. Twenty-four to 48 hours later I get an email asking me to fill out a second form. Then I go back to that second form and enter in a one-time code that is emailed to me. Annoying steps, to be sure, but ones that take only a couple minutes to complete, and at the end of this little dance, I get free COVID tests. No insurance required, no reimbursements to navigate, no running around town trying to find a pharmacy that has them in stock. (And, for people in pharmacy deserts—no need to haul a long way pharmacy). They show up on my doorstep a few days later, along with an email reminding me to bring them inside right away, since they’re temperature sensitive. Every individual in Colorado can request up to eight tests per week, should they need them.

The program that allows us these tests was launched on September 20th, and in under 12 weeks the state has been able to provide 1,030,306 tests for front line workers, kids, and anyone who might need a test, a spokesperson at the Colorado State Emergency Operations Center told me. And while there are a few other programs scattered around the country, in Colorado, the program is state-wide (unlike some which are county-based), and does not involve mailing a test back (as in Iowa). It is—in stark contrast to Joe Biden’s program involving reimbursement via insurance for tests—exceedingly simple and inclusive. (Some 28 million Americans do not have health insurance.) The Rapid At-Home testing program is one of The Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment’s most popular programs.