At-home COVID tests will be available to pick up in supermarkets around Australia from next month, which is really a sign of the times.
Sourdough bread? Check. Rice? Check. Soy milk? Check. Toilet roll? Check. Rapid antigen COVID-19 test? Got that too. Our grocery shop is about to be altered with the news that at-home COVID tests are about to become a normal thing to see in supermarkets.
The Hough Pharma nasal tests (they have a fast turnaround of around 15 minutes), will be available to buy from a selected 700 Coles stores around the country from next week. They’re the first of eight rapid antigen tests approved by regulators to be soon rolled out nationally. They’ll supposedly be coming in packs of two or five, and be available both in-store and online.
It’s not just Coles either. Woolies are aiming to stock testing kits as soon as possible, starting in high-risk states such as Victoria and NSW.
A testing kit will supposedly set you back between $10 and $30 which seems a fair price to protect the fam from a virus. The Australian Association of Convenience Stores also confirmed that they’ll be available at servos and convenience stores too, meaning you’ll soon be able to pick up a testing kit while stopping for petrol on the way home from work.
“Our sector has been operating throughout the pandemic and have seen firsthand the effects that a positive case can have on other staff who have had to isolate for a period of time, which ultimately flows on to disruption in business operations,” the Association’s CEO, Theo Foukkare, said.
The first batch of testing kits were approved last month by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA), with another batch given the green light in early October.
So keep an eye out at your local Coles from next week while you do your weekly shop for the arrival of the COVID tests. The new normal indeed.
Check out a guide to doing a COVID-19 self test:
