THE Malaysian Pharmacists Society (MPS) expressed its concern regarding the rampant sale of fake COIVD-19 self-test kits that are distributed by unqualified sellers that are neither doctors or even pharmacists.
Since the usage of the fake test kits may to be dangerous and may also provide results of false negatives which could worsen the infection of COVID-19, the authorities need to take immediate action to put a stop to the distribution.
MPS also hopes that the Government will manage the sales and distribution off authentic self-test kits efficiently via subsidisation or price control mechanisms to curb any further distribution of the fake ones.
“Ideally, self-test kits should be provided for free to the public. But if the Government is not able to do so, a mechanism to subsidise the cost should be put into place,” said MPS president Amrahi Buang in a statement yesterday.
In view of potential price control mechanisms, MPS advises the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs to give a grace period of one month before implementation as the move would assist pharmacists who have already purchased the self-test kits at a higher cost to clear the more expensive stock.
In the event a grace period is not granted by the ministry, MPS hopes there will be a subsidy or refund mechanism be put in place to avoid losses to pharmacists who purchased the stocks in good faith.
“We received numerous complaints from the public and from pharmacists of self-test kits that are being sold online and via WhatsApp at extremely low prices and with no guarantee of the product being genuine,” Amrahi continued.
Additionally, the ministry needs to make sure that the price control includes standardisation of the sales price as well as the cost price from the supplier.
MPS also suggests that a dedicated page is set up to enable complaints against fake products and sales by non-pharmacists and non-doctors. This would enable turnover of complaints to be handled quickly and efficiently by the ministry’s enforcement arm.
“It is critical that a mechanism to identify fake and genuine stock of self-test kits be implemented to further protect the public. Suppliers of self-test kits, the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs and the Medical Device Authority (MDA) should work on this immediately,” Amrahi stressed. – Aug 20, 2021
