Rapid Test & Track offers 240 million ‘UK-style’ rapid antigen Covid testing kits
A Sydney-based company says it can supply the same rapid antigen kits used in the UK if the test is given emergency approval and the commonwealth guarantees a purchase.
A Sydney-based rapid antigen test outfit says it can supply 240 million of the same kits used in Britain to Australia if the commonwealth guarantees a purchase and the medicines regulator provides it with it emergency approval.
Rapid Test & Track said it had secured the offer to supply the kits from the Chinese manufacturer, starting in January.
The tests, supplied by Chinese meditech Biotime, are the same as used by Brazil and the Britain, where it is supplied free to residents.
However, Rapid Test & Track is still awaiting the outcome of approval of the nasal test kits by the Therapeutic Goods Administration.
Rapid Test & Track chief executive Alan Higgins said the rapid antigen tests were a critical part of the fight to suppress the outbreak of Covid-19 and take pressure off the PCR testing scheme.
The booming holiday demand for PCR tests has seen processing and wait time for results blow out to several days.
Rapid antigen tests can deliver results in 30 minutes.
Many businesses have been forced to shut after staff were exposed to Covid-19 cases, with employees left waiting days for their result.
Mr Higgins said there was a closing window for Australia to secure the test volumes before they were snapped up by other world governments.
“I’ve got the tests and secured the stock, on Wednesday I could have delivered 30m before New Year’s Eve and 100m before the first week of January,” he said.
“That stock has now disappeared its been accounted for.”
Mr Higgins said he could secure the tests under the offer for “below $4 each”.
This compares to the shop price of rapid antigen tests of between $15 and $30 per test.
Many retailers of the tests around Australia have sold out of rapid antigen kits in recent days. The increasing demand comes as overseas suppliers are put under increasing strain by government orders.
British authorities have recently increased their orders for the Biotime tests, and now expect to take delivery of more than 1.5 billion kits, while the Biden administration will also distribute 500 million rapid antigen tests to US residents in January – almost 17 million tests a day.
The NSW government recently announced it would seek to secure rapid antigen testing kits for its citizens.
However, the federal government has made no moves to supply rapid antigen tests.
Mr Higgins said the timing was critical on securing the testing kits, with many produced in China and with factories likely to shut for some time around Chinese New year in February.
“We’re more than happy to say it’s a race,” Mr Higgins said.
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