Having rapid COVID-19 test kits available at stores would not effectively block community spread of the virus, as people might not report the results, the New Power Party (NPP) said yesterday.
NPP Legislator Chen Jiau-hua (陳椒華) hosted an online news conference after the Ministry of Health and Welfare on Saturday last week approved five rapid test kits for sale.
Three of the products were imported from the US, one from South Korea and the other is made in Taiwan, with their accuracy rates ranging from 85 to 97 percent, the ministry said.
Photo: Wu Shu-wei, Taipei Times
Test kits have been available at convenience and drug stores since Tuesday, while supermarket chain Pxmart began selling them yesterday.
NPP spokeswoman Wu Pei-yu (吳佩芸), who is also a pharmacist, said that the government does not have a mechanism for people to report test results, while false positives or negatives might create an infection loophole.
“People might not report negative results, which might actually be false negatives,” Wu said. “In such cases, they might inadvertently be virus spreaders in their community.”
Although people who purchase rapid test kits at convenience stores and supermarkets are referred to pharmacies if they have questions, pharmacists might not be familiar with kits that they do not stock, she said.
Importers submitted performance reports from other countries when they applied for permissions to sell their kits in Taiwan, Chen said.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) should collect local data to ensure that test results are as accurate as the manufacturers claim, she said.
Chien Chia-hung (錢嘉宏), deputy head of the FDA’s medical devices and cosmetics division, said that test kits should be easy to use, while manufacturers are required to provide written and video instructions online, as well as contact information.
Written instructions should contain a QR code to video instructions, Chien said.
“Pharmacists are not obligated to consult people if they are asked about a test kit that they do not stock,” he said.
Test results can be skewed if people do not follow the instructions properly or kits were not properly stored, Chien said.
People are encouraged to review government-approved test kits on the FDA Web site as well as instructions before they make a purchase, he said, adding that consumers and medical institutions should report defective products.
Manufacturers should regularly submit data to the FDA, he said.
“Rapid test kits for COVID-19 are not must-have household items, and test results are more useful in areas with relatively more confirmed cases,” Chien said.
Moreover, people “should go to community screening stations immediately if they have symptoms indicating possible COVID-19 infection,” he said.
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