 kit said to be a cheaper alternative is now available at all Unity pharmacies and selected FairPrice){kind=link}
A new brand of Antigen Rapid Test (ART) kit said to be a cheaper alternative is now available at all Unity pharmacies and selected FairPrice outlets.
The ART kits, which are produced by Flowflex has started retailing today (Dec 10) and is priced at $4.90 for a single test kit, $24 for a box of five and $117.50 for a box of 25.
A cost comparison done against other available brands in the Singapore market shows that a typical single test kit of other brands costs about $13.
Origins of Flowflex
The Flowflex brand ART kit is manufactured by a United States (US) based diagnostics and medical devices firm known as Acon Laboratories.
Approved by Health Sciences Authority
The Health Sciences Authority (HSA) has authorised the use of the Flowflex ART kits on 8 November 2021.
It is being approved under the Pandemic Special Access Route for critical new medical products during a pandemic and with the inclusion of Flowflex, there are now 11 approved test kits in Singapore.
Introduction into Singapore
In the previous month, Minister for Health Ong Ye Kung had mentioned that Flowflex is one of the few cheaper alternatives of ART kits that the government would introduce into Singapore.
Flowflex was the first of them which was introduced and its initial stockpile was cleared by consumers within three days of its introduction.
There are two other brands namely Alltest and Indicad who had met the quality standards required by Singapore and are currently undergoing the registration process with HSA.
They have however not been included by HSA as of Friday (Dec 10).
Mr Ong added that he hoped that these two companies would price their kits lesser than $5 each.
FairPrice press release
FairPrice has said in their press release that the Flowflex kits are now available at selected Cheers, FairPrice Xpress Convenience stores and its outlets at hospitals.
In the coming week, they will include the kits at more convenience stores with higher human traffic as well as at its Esso service stations.
It added that consumer demand for these kits would be monitored and it will continue to bring in supplies and relevant products for Singaporeans.
Image source: flowflexrapidtest.com & Google Maps