Price, access to rapid tests creating pandemic inequities for Canadians, advocates say
CTV
Advocates and health-care workers are continuing to push for rapid antigen tests to be available for free to the public across Canada as COVID-19 infections rise.
Rapid antigen tests (RATs), which offer on-the-spot COVID-19 test results in less than 20 minutes, have become the centre of holiday gathering discussions. But thanks to a muddled distribution process and high prices, getting the tests into the hands of Canadians who need them has so far proven difficult.
“If we had this test readily available for families, I think people will want to test before they go to congregate settings or large indoor gatherings,” Birgit Umaigba, an Ontario-based ICU and ER Registered Nurse, said in a telephone interview with CTVNews.ca Tuesday.
“But without equitable access, it is impossible to achieve that…not many people can afford to pay $40 for the rapid tests, especially if you have a family of five, six, seven.”
Umaigba is one of the many health professionals vocally advocating for provincial governments to make RATs free to address inequity in testing access and prohibitive costs.
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