SELF-administered coronavirus disease (COVID-19) antigen test kits cannot be sold for more than P350, the Department of Health (DOH) said yesterday as it imposed a price cap for all home kits.
“A price cap (of P350) is set for self-administered antigen rapid diagnostic test kits, subject to regular review by the Technical Working Group,” said the DOH via Department Circular No. 2021-0323-B.
The DOH said the amount is inclusive of the materials and accessories necessary for the procedure, such as appropriate swab, test kit cartridge, buffer or equivalent, tube or equivalent for mixing of buffer with sample, dropper, or equivalent sample delivery instrument, and manual or leaflet containing instructions on the use of the self-administered test kit.
Self-administered test kits are those can be bought over the counter, without the need for a doctor’s prescription, and can be performed by non-healthcare professionals or lay users in homes, non-hospital, or non-laboratory settings.
Last month, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the applications of Abbot’s Panbio COVID-19 Antigen Self-Test and Labnovation Technologies’ SARS-COV-2 Antigen Rapid Test for public use.
FDA director and officer-in-charge Oscar Gutierrez, during the Talk to the People address of President Duterte on Monday night, said they have approved another brand of self-administered COVID-19 antigen test kits, bringing the total brands available in the country to three.
Gutierrez said the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) is currently evaluating the effectiveness of 54 more brands of COVID-19 home testing kits.
Aside from setting the price cap for self-administered antigen test kits, the DOH also adjusted the price cap for the antigen test kits used by laboratories as well as its testing service costs.
The DOH said the updated price cap is set at P660 per antigen testing.
The amount covers for the P350 payment for the testing kit, P250 for the operational cost (laboratory supply and overhead), and P60 for the 10 percent allowable markup.
“Licensed health facilities and clinical laboratories may have prices lower than the prescribed price cap for antigen rapid diagnostic testing, provided that quality of services is maintained,” said the DOH.
Previously, the DOH has set the price cap for antigen testing at P960.
The previous price cap accounts for the P500 payment for the testing kit, P300 for the operational cost (laboratory supply and overhead), and P160 for the 20 percent allowable markup.
The FDA has granted an emergency use authorization (EUA) to four additional brands of the anti-COVID drug molnupiravir, bringing the total number of available anti-viral drugs in the country to six.
