Rapid at-home COVID-19 tests are fast, but the regulatory approval needed to get them in the hands of Americans has been slow to come. Why it matters: Quick, fully at-home COVID-19 tests could make a vital contribution to stemming the pandemic — and open up a new frontier for more constant disease surveillance — but old assumptions about how diagnostics should be used are holding them back. Driving the news: On Wednesday, the Biden administration unveiled a $1.6 billion plan to accelerate COVID-19 testing in schools and other settings, bolster the supply chains for testing materials, and enhance genetic sequencing surveillance.