Chemist Warehouse boss addresses shortage of rapid antigen test kits in stores nationwide
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Austalia’s largest pharmacy chain, Chemist Warehouse, has announced that they will soon have rapid antigen test kits back on their store shelves across the country.
COVID-19 Rapid Antigen test kits are selling out fast in Australia. Credit: Sunrise.
Mario Tascone, Chemist Warehouse chief operating officer, said that delays in shipping and customs due to recent holidays largely affected their restocking of rapid test supplies.
“We’ve got stocks due out to our Sydney stores later this afternoon (Tuesday), and we hope to replenish our Victorian, Queensland, Tasmanian and South Australian stores later tomorrow,” said Mr Tascone.
“The biggest issue is supply at the moment; everyone is faced with the same problems. With these rapid antigen tests, it’s not as if there’s a magic warehouse sitting with stockpiles of this stock,” he added.
“It needs to be ordered and manufactured. The limitations are really the planeloads getting them into Sydney airport and getting them released by customs.”
However, the officer assured customers that by “early next week”, Chemist Warehouse would be able to bring several testing kits back on their shelves, as “planeloads” are on their way from overseas.
Mario Tascone, chief operating officer for Chemist Warehouse, said the testing kits should be more affordable and accessible to the public. Credit: 7News.
Mr Tascone, along with several other retailers, has also called upon the government to make rapid antigen tests more affordable and accessible to Australians, saying that they were “being stretched to their limits” trying to address the public demands for the tests.
“The demand is just crazy at the moment, even with the limit per person, we personally have a limit of two per person, and even with that, they are disappearing rapidly,” he said, adding that the 500,000 kits shipped to the country every day are still not enough.
He also expressed his concern for Australians who cannot afford the test kits.
“There’s been a lot of commentary on whether governments should make these free for Australians, and I couldn’t agree more, especially for concession cardholders and pensioners,” he said.
“We need to do something to help make these tests affordable for Australians, particularly if we are going to require them to go to work or to travel or if they’re a close contact.”
On Monday, Prime Minister Scott Morrison responded by saying, “We’re now in a stage of the pandemic where you can’t just go around making everything free.”
“When someone tells you they want to make something free, someone’s always going to pay for it, and it’s going to be you.”
In an interview with Ben Fordham, Mr Tascone said, “The thought that the government is making 10 per cent off of millions of rapid antigen tests… doesn’t sit right.”
“They really need to be as affordable as possible.”
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