For the past few months, I\u2019ve been using the at-home COVID test that my workplace provided to employees. It\u2019s called Cue Health.<\/p>\r\n
It\u2019s not a PCR test, but it\u2019s apparently roughly as accurate as PCR; like PCR, this is a NAAT (Nucleic Acid Amplification Test), which looks for and amplifies the virus\u2019s RNA. It therefore detects smaller amounts of the virus than a rapid antigen test (like BinaxNOW), which doesn\u2019t amplify anything.<\/p>\r\n
And the Cue Health test gives results at home in about 20 minutes, like a rapid antigen test, whereas PCR requires special equipment and more time.<\/p>\r\n
And Cue Health has recently been made available to the general public. (At least in the US; not sure about elsewhere.)<\/p>\r\n
But there\u2019s one big drawback to the Cue Health test, compared to rapid antigen tests: the price.<\/p>\r\n
In the US, you can buy rapid antigen tests in stores for roughly $10 per test (usually in packs of two tests). (Apparently they\u2019re a whole lot less expensive in some other countries.)<\/p>\r\n
But the Cue Reader analyzer unit costs $250, and each test costs $75. (Sold in packs of 3 or 10 tests.)<\/p>\r\n
You can get bulk discounts. For example, you can buy the Reader plus a ten-pack of tests for $950 (5% off of the regular price). Or you can get a subscription to the Cue+ service for $50\/month, which gets you a variety of discounts; you can get the Reader plus ten tests for the $600 of a 12-month subscription (and then you can buy more tests for $60 apiece). But even with a discount, these tests are a lot more expensive than the rapid antigen tests.<\/p>\r\n
The Cue tests are significantly less expensive than PCR tests, and much faster, and roughly as accurate, so if you\u2019re getting a lot of PCR tests and you have to pay for them yourself, Cue seems like a win all around.<\/p>\r\n
But for people for whom $10\/test for a rapid antigen test is already a barrier, Cue is super-unaffordable.<\/p>\r\n