
Can't find a COVID-19 home test? Try a tracking app
CBSN
Struggling to find a home COVID-19 test? It might be time to let bots do the scouting for you.
Demand for rapid tests is so high that one Chicago-area teenager created a website dedicated to scouring major retail websites for the products. Fourteen-year-old Eli Coustan got the idea for FindACovidTest.org while planning a holiday get-together with his family, Coustan told CBS Boston. When they had trouble finding tests, Coustan got the idea to build a site that checks retailers for an "add to cart" button every five to 10 minutes. He told CBS Boston it now get thousands of visitors a day.
Other tracking websites and apps — including HotStock, NowInStock.net, ZooLert and Brickseek — have added COVID-19 home tests to their suite of in-demand items. The tools, which just weeks ago were helping some holiday shoppers secure in-demand gaming consoles or graphics cards, are now keeping a digital eye out for tests across ecommerce sites.