Walgreens is limiting customers to purchasing 4 at-home COVID tests at a time as Omicron cases surge

• Walgreens will now only allow customers to buy up to four at-home COVID tests at a time.
• The company cited increased demand for the tests as the Omicron variant spreads nationwide.
• The CDC said Monday that Omicron now accounts for 73% of confirmed cases in the US.

Walgreens will limit the number of at-home COVID tests customers can purchase amid a wave of Omicron cases nationwide. 

“Due to the incredible demand for at-home rapid testing, we put in effect a four-item purchase limit on at-home COVID-19 testing products in our stores and digital properties in an effort to help improve inventory while we continue to work diligently with our supplier partners to best meet customer demands,” a Walgreens spokesperson told Insider on Tuesday. 

CNBC’s Spencer Kimball was the first to report that Walgreens would limit purchases. A spokesperson for CVS Health told CNBC that the pharmacy chain has also seen a spike in demand for at-home tests and is working quickly to restock its inventory. 

The new limits on at-home tests comes amid a surge in new COVID cases nationwide.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Monday that the Omicron variant now accounts for 73% of recent confirmed cases in the US — in some areas of the country, including parts of the Northeast, more than 90% of confirmed cases are Omicron. On Monday, New York State set a new record for positive COVID cases for the third day in a row, reporting 22,478 cases statewide. 

President Joe Biden is expected to announce Tuesday that his administration will purchase and distribute 500 million at-home tests, CNBC reported. But the tests won’t come until January, missing the busy holiday travel season that experts warn could lead to a rise in new cases.