quote:

A 2016 FDA advisory panel, meanwhile, was split on whether the benefits of over-the-counter influenza tests outweighed the risks. Meeting transcripts show that as experts debated whether at-home tests would actually be effective at keeping people at home if they knew they or their children had the flu, one panelist joked that daycare centers might make the decision for parents if over-the-counter tests were available.

“The woman is going to want to go to work, and she wants to drop her kids off at daycare,” the panelist said. “The daycare, when they sign their contract, [could say] ‘If your kid has symptoms, we’re going to test him,’” and send the child home if they tested positive.

The room laughed at the idea.

This scenario is not so laughable in the wake of the pandemic. During the height of the Omicron wave, nearly 1 in 4 symptomatic people were testing themselves at home. Many Americans have clearly gotten accustomed to the idea of at-home testing, and to the fact that they may have to adjust their plans if they get a positive result.