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In November last year, private clinics asked authorities to speed up the coronavirus testing process with rapid antigen tests. The response to these tests is after 15 minutes, but they are not as accurate as the PCR test. The procedure was drafted, but then it became clear that the state buys rapid tests for less than 2 euros. And in private clinics, such a study, plus the work and earnings of doctors, costs the client 10 or even 15 times more expensive.
An even bigger difference can be seen when comparing the prices of PCR tests in Lithuania and abroad. For example, the PCR test costs € 70-95 in Lithuania, € 43-55 in France, around € 50 in Latvia, and € 46-70 in Belgium.
Many private institutions interviewed by LNK cannot explain why Lithuania rejects such trial prices, which does not have time for that. One explained in writing.
“Most of the cost of the test consists of salaries (along the chain), from sampling, data entry in e-health, laboratory performance, re-entry to the system and the like. The chain has at least less 3-4 employees. It is worth mentioning that employees who work in this chain have much higher salary expectations than employees with the same qualifications who work with non-infectious samples and the like, “explained Laura Penikienė, Executive Director of InMedica, to LNK .
Gediminas Lapkus, Director of GAPRO MEDICA, a company that sells tests to medical companies, explains the price differences as follows.
“You have to understand that this is a lot of money, everyone wants to lose a piece of their cake or a piece,” said G. Lapkus.
The provider of the test assures that the profit is not high: between 15 and 20 percent, sometimes 30 percent.
“If the service provider doesn’t buy, most of it still remains,” said G. Lapkus.
In the hope that the tests will be cheaper for people, this year the VAT will be eliminated. However, according to Valdas Buginskis, a representative of the State Tax Inspectorate (STI) who attended the meeting of the Seimas Budget and Finance Committee, people did not feel it.
“From what we have analyzed the companies, so far we have not noticed any change. So far, we don’t see any benefit for the consumer, ”said an STI representative.
“Preliminary data shows that the VAT rebate applied did not bring any benefit to consumers, test prices did not decrease. And they are unlikely to decrease in the near future,” said Mykolas Majauskas, Chairman of the Budget and Finance Committee of the Seimas, to LNK.
Despite the fact that prices have not decreased, the abolition of the VAT rebate policy is not yet planned. According to M. Majauskas, lower prices are expected when the number of tests on the market increases. And they really should increase.
The Department of Health (SAM) is developing procedures to make it easier for pharmacies to purchase tests that people can perform without medical help.
However, if that test is positive, the person will still need to be examined at a mobile checkpoint.
“After the positive test, there will be no mandatory isolation or related disability benefits,” explained Živilė Simonaitytė, SAM deputy minister.
The ministry promises to approve the procedure for the purchase of self-monitoring tests in pharmacies by the end of next week.
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