Coronavirus tests are also available in some pharmacies: what are they and how much do they cost?

We are going to be interestedas evidence – considerable

Žiedūnė Juškytė, manager of the Camelia communication project, told the Delfi portal that many patients were already interested in the possibility of buying a rapid test for COVID-19.

“Patients who come to the pharmacy are often interested and ask pharmacists if we do not sell rapid COVID-19 tests. We feel the need for patients, so we allow them to buy the rapid COVID-19 antigen test safely. and convenient in the pharmacy ”, said the interviewee.

Currently, network pharmacies sell rapid saliva antigen tests. The price of one of these tests in pharmacies is 15.99 euros.

“In the near future, we plan to have rapid COVID-19 antigen tests in pharmacies, which are done by taking a sample from the nose. The cost of such tests will be less “Ž. Juškytė.

Tests can only be performed by an authorized person

Irena Tėvelienė, marketing director of Gintarinės vaistinė, said that the pharmacies in her network already have two types of COVID-19 antigen tests: a saliva antigen set and an antigen test set taking a sample from the nose.

“We are ready to commercialize them, we are only waiting for instructions from the Ministry of Health (SAM) on the procedure to commercialize these tests.” The price is still adjusting, “said I. Tėvelienė.

The interlocutor also added: “Only antibody tests for professional use have been approved in the European Union, so we cannot do this under the SAM procedure. Institutional solutions are needed to change the situation.

These tests are invasive and designed for professional use, so they can only be performed in licensed facilities and only by an authorized person. “

With wider use, the price should go down

According to Mindaugas Urbas, Marketing and Communication Manager of the BENU Pharmacy Network, currently both antigen and antibody tests are available at their network pharmacies, but only by special request.

“We have all kinds of antigen tests: when you analyze a sample from the nose (you can buy 10 pieces each), from saliva and from blood, you can also buy one of the last two types of tests.

With the wider use of rapid tests, prices are expected to drop, but today the minimum cost of the rapid COVID-19 antigen test is almost € 10.

However, all these tests are for professional use, and the self-administered test and its result are not yet equivalent to official tests performed at clinics or mobile checkpoints. After all, the legal framework that defines the sale, use and quality of the evidence and the justification of the results has not yet been adequately developed.

As far as we know, SAM is currently discussing this type of test, but there are no clearer instructions yet. If a special list were drawn up to include pharmacies, then the test purchased here would also be considered valid and its results would be recognized as reliable.

According to the current procedure, only clinics that perform tests can be held responsible for the results of the tests, ”emphasized M. Urbas.

The deputy minister spoke about the tests

This Wednesday, the Deputy Minister of Health, Živilė Simonaitytė, informed the Seimas Budget and Finance Committee about the possibilities of acquiring rapid antigen tests to detect the disease.

“Let’s start with the fact that pharmacies will be able to buy a test that a person can take on their own and that will be less invasive, not of the nasopharynx, but of the nasal cavity or saliva,” the deputy minister told the committee.

Subsequently, Aistė Šuksta, Advisor to the Minister of Health, informed BNS that the initial version was considering allowing the purchase of rapid antigen tests in pharmacies. However, he emphasized that this provision is not final and is subject to change.

OZ. Simonaitytė said that after being examined in pharmacies and diagnosed with a coronavirus infection, a person will not be able to require mandatory isolation or access to, for example, the disability benefit; it will still have to be examined at a mobile point.

According to the deputy minister, the procedure for the liberalization of trade in coronavirus tests is currently being finalized.

“We are in the final stages and we plan … we will have an order this week or next so that it is possible to buy tests for people to do themselves in pharmacies,” Ž. Simonaitytė.

“They (tests – BNS) will be to raise awareness, for self-examination,” he added.

The vice minister stressed that tests in pharmacies would only be sold, not carried out.

Ž. According to Simonaitytė, after the self-test, if the infection is revealed, the person will still have to go to the mobile point and “take a real test”.

“These tests will not create all the other conditions that other tests create: they will not turn positive after self-assessment other than mandatory isolation or disability benefits,” Ž. Simonaitytė.

Head of the Pharmacy Association – Tests are for professional use only

Kristina Nemaniūtė-Gagė, Director of the Lithuanian Pharmacy Association, is convinced that people using rapid tests should have the opportunity to prioritize mobile checkpoints.

“If a person has been tested, he sees that it is positive that it would be a priority for him to register at a mobile point, that there would be a faster normal test, that there would be more confidence in all tests,” he added. K. Nemaniūtė-Gagė spoke at the committee.

According to her, it is now not possible to buy tests in Lithuanian pharmacies, because only tests intended for professional use are approved in the European Union.

“If a person bought them, they would have to take them to a medical institution to have that test done. Other countries allow these tests to be sold and people use them for self-monitoring, but solutions are needed: the accreditation service has to say what kind of test, and the ministry has to approve the procedure, we are waiting for those things, ”he said. the pharmacy representative.

According to K. Nemaniūtė-Gagė, such tests would be necessary, and pharmacists are already looking for them: “The search and the hunt are ongoing.”