US President Joe Biden has said 500 million Covid rapid tests will be made available at no cost amid new measures to tackle the surging Omicron variant.
Mr. Biden also announced expanded testing and military support for hospitals, but said lockdowns were not yet on the horizon.
Omicron has become the dominant strain in the US, accounting for nearly three-quarters of all new cases.
It was first identified in southern Africa last month but has now spread around the globe.
Only one death in the US has been linked to the new variant
A 50-year-old from Harris County, Texas, who had an underlying health condition and was unvaccinated died. END.
