COVID Testing using RAT (Rapid Antigen Test) - Price Gouging

Health & Body
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Some answers as to what the tests should really cost if one needs to pay for them, and the alternatives for providing them for free.

Singapore, is close to Australia, offers one comparison.

Tests that are sold at retailers are also now considerably cheaper than those currently on offer in Australia, where tests had cost between $10 and $15 each, but have since exploded to as much as $30 to $40 a pop in some cases.

From 10 December, it was reported that Singaporean retailers were stocking “Flowflex” tests at $5 each, while a pack of five cost $24.

The UK has distribution strategies in place for it’s free test kits. Refer to the linked article.

Some have rejected the notion of supplying RAT kits free in Australia assuming we will all race out and start hording them. I’m not convinced Australians are that selfish, but if we are the UK shows what is possible and fair.

Australia has a well established Universal health care system, which is more than capable of managing fair distribution, whether free or paid for on a fixed price as for the PBS. We have used it to manage the vaccination approvals and record keeping. Surely it could manage issue of RAT kits. It may be too late, in which instance others can judge who has failed

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No further comment :wink:

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Interesting story in the news today - Scott Huntsman of All-Cast PPE claims to be able to source 100million RAT kits quickly at roughly $3.00 per test ex factory.
He also claims that many retailers are only putting them on their shelves a few at a time to keep the fear of scarcity alive.
The fact that he identifies himself and his company lends much credibility in my eyes.

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It would appear that the concerns Scott Morrison’s expressed on behalf of industry about free RATs is fabricated by him.

From the Guardian article: Covid rapid antigen tests: suppliers deny pressing PM to abandon commitment to provide free kits;
“the head of the peak body for manufacturers and suppliers of rapid tests, told Guardian Australia the industry did not have a position on whether they should be free or not”.
“Similarly, the president of the Pharmacy Guild, Trent Twomey, said his group had not lobbied the government on the issue.”

I also saw interview with these and other industry representatives, all expressing the same sentiments.

Thus it appears that the only one against providing free RATs to everyone is the Prime Minister & perhaps his Government. So who’s interests are being looked after??

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One man’s claim (click bait) clicked through including a bit from the ACCC. Take it or leave it as factual.

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Another shoe drops :slight_smile:

Follow the bouncing bs…

COVID updates: Prime Minister Scott Morrison says national cabinet agreed RAT kits should not be free for everyone

What to believe when there is so much spinning. What was first? what was most recent? What will be last?

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Covid Omicron testing. What a complete stuff up. The Government says don’t go for a PCR test unless you have symptoms. The queues for PCR testing can be up to 5-6 hours long if you can find an open testing centre. They are saying that about 1 in 3 or 4 people now has Omicron. If you queue up for a PCR test you are more likely to catch Omicron while in the queue.

The Rapid Antigen Test kits (buy TGA approved only) are very expensive and very hard to find if you are inclined to buy one and then there is price gauging to add to the problem. There are currently no free Rapid Antigen Test kits. So if you avoid a PCR test queue and can’t get or won’t buy a Rapid Antigen Test kit you just keep moving about dining out, shopping, going to clubs, coffee shops, visiting friends or family all the while you may be infected with Omicron and spreading it throughout the community. Appears to be the Governments new position, suck it up people. To top this off you have the arrogant people who either don’t wear a mask or only wear a mask over their mouth leaving their nose exposed to the Omicron virus. In my view all this will only rapidly increase the spread of Omicron.
In the end your best option is to be fully vaccinated, including the booster shot and to wear a mask correctly (over mouth and nose). Good luck avoiding catching the Omicron virus.

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Isn’t the general advice, that if you have symptoms or have been a close contact or directed to do so, one needs to self isolate?

The requirements there after seem to be a little confused in all the recent changes.

The conditions of resuming normal movement vary depending on state and what testing is available.

Agree it makes it the harder to accept when there are others in the community who seem not to care. Whether that’s due to a medical exemption or failure of leadership only the individual with no mask or not worn correctly knows. Similar can be said concerning vaccination status.

The situation concerning testing is a clear indication most Australians personally believe what they are doing is necessary. Turning up to get test or asking for test kits for home.

One only needs to look to other countries such as the UK with a similar level of health service and vaccination to see how it can evolve. Hopefully our leadership is more capable and our health services better prepared. 334 lives lost last week in the UK due to Covid.

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What a surprise. High office has it privileges will be the response from one side, but from the other perhaps a serious :roll_eyes:

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Speaking to one of our English relatives, there are concerns in the UK about individuals hoarding RATs issued by the NHS and selling them online, especially to those without access to government subsidised test kits.

Unfortunately with any government intervention in markets, there will always those who try and make money and abuse the government assistance provided.

This possibly could be reduced by making then a prescription type device, where issuing of RATs are restricted and controlled to those who need testing.

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In the fullness of time? One observation is this is a race, and time is of the essence.

The recent double triple twisting backflip has seen progress. And it does leverage existing national systems in place to manage and control pharmaceuticals.

Does it really need a prescription for a RAT test? That seems to make it more complex and onerous. How does one know one has Covid? Joseph Heller knows how to best explain what that might be a saying! :wink:

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There is also a reality that any government program will be abused by some, usually a small minority whether vocal and visible or in the shadows. On the other side of the spectrum there is ample evidence those with no need to abuse anything find ways to benefit themselves by making, sponsoring, or taking advantage of whatever is on offer.

Public health has economic benefits not just costs.

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It isn’t a race. There are many experts that have indicated that Australia will ride out the current Ormicon outbreak…the general consensus is that infection numbers will peak/plateau/stabilise in February before gradually falling.

In the UK, they have adopted the RAT/RLFT such that they are used every time one plans to potentially go to a place where one could catch Covid, to see if one has Covid (asymptomatic/syptomatic) and for regular self testing (regularly - and possibly multiple times per week). They took this approach as they believed that use of self rapid testing techniques could stem the tide in Oricom infections. This hasn’t been the case as UK infection rates have increased to the highest levels seen since the start of the pandemic. In the UK, there has been questions to their effectiveness (and associated cost on the public health system) for such use as it appears it hasn’t been an overly effective tool for a more infectious variant of Covid, when infections are widespread within the community and transmission is in front of testing. Australia is finding the same thing out with its past testing regime based on Delta and previous variants.

Due to their ‘ambitious’ self testing requirements (and from our English relative indicated), many locals have been stockpiling test kits worried what would happen if they became unavailable for s short period -as not having a test could prevent them doing basic tasks we often take for granted.

It also appears the reports of price gouging in Australia possibly stem from the UK situation where individuals have been trying to profiteer from the free kits available in the UK (noting there is no evidence such has occurred in Australia). In the UK, the government is now responding to complaints from citizens who find NHS issued test kits being sold online - they contact the social media/selling platform and request the advertisements be removed.

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i bought 3 for $14 each and when insanity started a box of 5 for $50.

ACCC are looking into price gouging

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Which modelling are they referring to and what are the forecast fatality rates?

Is how the UK are using their tests and how Australia will the same?

I’ll make my view point very clear. Access to free tests provides a sound basis, which permits Australians to take personal responsibility. If one tests positive at home and does not have a high risk factor or are seriously ill, why go out and burden the medical system. Stay home isolating for 7 days, retest if necessary and then get on with life. It will slow the spread and ease the burden elsewhere. Taking personal responsibility in a Covid normal world. Something the current PM trumpeted along side opening up all without restrictions, including at state borders.

P.S.
The fatality rate over the coming months will reveal the true wisdom of the largely political decisions to proceed as we are. I’m not suggesting we are poorly advised. Hopefully we don’t reach the extremes of the UK experience. As for the the effects on businesses whether through loss of staff or custom, it’s already hurting.

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If I understand media reports correctly, anyone in the UK can ring the NHS and 5(?) RATs will be delivered by mail.

This would not work in Australia, because by the time Australia Post delivered the RATs outside metro Syd/Melb the person requesting them would have completed their mandatory isolation period and be out and about again.

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It has been widely reported in the media.

The testing regime in the UK and in Australia is based on a position of containment and control. Neither Australia (except WA) or the UK are in a position of containment or control. As the CHO have been indicating for the past few weeks, Australia has moved from such a position to ‘living with Covid’ where it is becoming naturalised within the community.

The requirement for testing has changed significantly in the past month (except WA). This is reflected in the changing requirements for tests where they have been very much limited to situations where containment is still required (such as places known to contain immunosuppressant individuals such as age care facilities, hospitals etc) and prevention is in the interest of those residing in such institutions. In such cases, testing should be done to protect these vulnerable individuals immediately prior to any contact to reduce the risk of transmission.

Having wide spread testing has limited validity, with exception possibly for disease diagnosis for treatment, when treatment is required. In such circumstances, a test would be done, like for any other disease, prior to making a diagnosis and prescribing treatment.

I am not for the government’s policy of subsidising or proving free Covid tests to anyone who wants them. It does not serve any real purpose in the current position Australia is in. Possibly such has merit for WA where they are still hoping to active containment until February 2022, but for the rest of Australia, providing tests won’t overly impact on the transmission of the Ormicon variant in the community.

The CHO and some other experts have indicated that the community (and media) needs to change its mindset in relation to Covid - rather than keeping a scoring tally of total number of infections, look at the severity of the disease (hospitalisations, ICU admissions and deaths) amongst the vaccinated/unvaccinated within the community.

Looking at past flu seasons and current Omicron variant infections from state government released websites (excluding pre-Omicron), the Omicron variant could be no more sever in hospital admissions or death than the annual flu. The main difference is the flu season extends for about 3-5 months, whereby it has been reported that the Omicron has a significantly shorter season (possibly 1-3 months if the expected February peak is correct).

There is continuing lack of good data being presented by the media or that by the government (at all levels) to explain the current position and future position Australia faces in relation to Omicron. The CHOs have been trying to provide some information and why there needs to be a mindset change, but this hasn’t emerged significantly above the fixation of keeping total case tallies (like some kind of score).

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It would be reassuring to believe it is so.

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It’s not evident we are any where close to a peak in the current Covid wave, especially re hospitalisation. Covid has taken as many lives in the less than 2 years compared with influenza in 4 years from 2016-2019.

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If there is a Government Health forecast it would be great if you could share a copy.

For the next few weeks access to RAT test kits is likely to be more a concern than whether they are free or paid for. At which point in time we can revisit where the data is taking us. Doubtless there will be more said in the greater community about the costs. Something neither you or I can influence further.

P.S.

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Have a look at the pre-Covid years and compare with the Omicron environment we now live. One can’t look at the data since Covid, as like Covid, Flu figures have been dramatically reduced because of measures implemented to control Covid. I have provided all recent flu data in the link in the previous post.

As I indicated above, the outbreak in Australia is Omicron which is very different to previous variants. One can’t look at the whole of the Covid data since March 2020, as it does not represent the current outbreak environment. Doing so is very misleading.

And whether it is a waste of money. In the UK, they have been discussing the wind down of their program as it has had little effect on transmission.

Allyson Pollock, Professor of Public Health at Newcastle University, welcomed the scheme being wound down, calling it a “waste of money”. “We’ve got no comprehensive evaluation that lateral flow testing actually works to prevent infection and transmission and it’s done nothing but provide false reassurance to people,” said Pollock. “We’ve spent billions [of pounds] on these dodgy tests, let’s draw the line before we spend billions more.”

There are many more learned individuals in the UK who are critics of how the RATs have been used to no real effect on controlling the Omicron outbreak in the UK.

Discussion should not be about costs, but if and when they should be used…such as the examples outlined in my previous post. If there are no advantages to the general public to have RATs, then why should the government provide/pay for them for the general public to use them.

Where they are required to protect health of the vulnerable and where containment is possible, like some of the examples listed above, then they should be provided for use (free) by those places where tests are required before contact occurs. This should either be paid for by the government, or businesses where business mandate such requirements.

The latest AHPPC statement is also worth reading. A key statement is:

As case numbers in Australia increase, the effectiveness of TTIQ (test, trace, isolate and quarantine) declines.

It also provides a clear indication of where testing should be carried out…and is consistent with what has been posted earlier.

As indicated above, currently Australia (expect WA) is no longer in containment/control phase of the Omicron variant, and the variant is/has become naturalised within the community. General testing, as indicated by AHPPC statement, is for when there are low numbers and containment/control is possible. As this is no longer possible, the value of testing has changed. As the CHOs have indicated, there needs to be change in midset in relation to what has happened in the past and what is required in the future.

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Concerning the RAT test so called price goughing, what does Choice consider to be a “fair” markup on cost +freight ?

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