Massachusetts will distribute more than 2 million free rapid, at-home COVID-19 tests in communities hit hardest by the coronavirus pandemic.Gov. Charlie Baker said the free tests will be given out in 102 Massachusetts cities and towns that have the highest proportion of families living below the Federal Poverty Level. The materials will be distributed in packs that contain two tests. All 20 of the commonwealth’s most disproportionately impacted equity communities were included by these criteria. In total, the 102 municipalities account for nearly 3.7 million Massachusetts residents.”Part of the objective here is to make these available to many folks who don’t necessarily have the financial wherewithal to do it and to make them available so they can use them for gatherings of one kind or another,” Baker said. “Let’s face it, this time of year there are a lot of those kinds of activities, and I think what we’re trying to do is to make it one more tool in the toolbox that can be used to make those events as safe as possible.”Teams from the Massachusetts National Guard and the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency will help deliver the 2.1 million iHealth rapid antigen COVID-19 test kits to towns starting Tuesday. Local officials will then determine the best strategy to distribute the tests to their residents, Baker said.”The tests can be completed by residents in their home. Test results will be complete in 15 minutes and do not go to a lab,” Health and Human Services Secretary Marylou Sudders said. The 2.1 million tests cost $10 million in state-appropriated funds, which are to be reimbursed from FEMA.Info: Towns receiving free test kitsThe state is also negotiating with rapid test kit manufacturers to allow cities and towns to purchase additional tests at a lower cost.Baker has recently been critical of the federal government for not doing more to make rapid testing available and affordable. President Joe Biden announced plans to require the nation’s health insurers to reimburse those who purchase at-home rapid tests but Baker argued that did not go far enough.”They should be available in tens of thousands if not hundreds of thousands of locations, they should cost a buck, and people should be able to go in there and buy five, buy 10, and then give a ton of them to the community health centers so the community health centers can do the same thing,” the governor said. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said last week that people should consider using a rapid self-test before joining any indoor gatherings with people outside of their immediate household.Meanwhile, this week, some houses of worship are instituting new COVID-19 safety protocols.The Archdiocese of Boston announced a mask mandate among churchgoing Catholics, and there has been a mixed reaction. “I want a choice,” one parishioner said.”I was very thankful, actually, because – as you see – I already wear a mask, and I’m immune-compromised,” another parishioner said. Even if it’s optional, experts recommend wearing a mask indoors in situations when and where you don’t know the vaccination status of others. About 60 million Americans who are eligible for the vaccine remain unvaccinated, and 100 million who are eligible for a booster have yet to get it. Early indications are that a booster may be necessary to give the optimal protection from COVID-19 and the omicron variant.