PUTRAJAYA, February 22 – The Ministry of Internal Trade and Consumer Affairs (MDTCA) has ensured an adequate supply of Covid-19 or RTK antigen rapid test kits, with some 18 million units currently on the market.
The MDTCA, in a statement today, said the availability of RTKs was based on daily monitoring and inspections carried out by the ministry on importers, manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers to ensure stable supply of the product on the market.
The RTK was classified as a controlled article under the Control of Supplies (Controlled Goods) Order (No. 6) 2021 on November 24, 2021 and came into force on December 1, 2021, to ensure its availability and a supply sufficient in the market.
According to the ministry, eight manufacturers who have received conditional authorization to produce RTK in Malaysia have produced a total of 4.306 million units of RTK up to February 2022, while a total of 2.34 million units of RTK were imported from seven countries.
Regarding complaints about RTK shortage in the market, he said that only three reports had been received from January 1 until yesterday.
On the price range of RTK in the market, he indicated that it is between RM4.90 and RM19.90 per unit.
“Eighty percent of RTK is sold for less than RM10.00 per unit,” the ministry said.
The ministry said a total of 8,084 retail outlets had been given permission to sell RTK, which is recognized by the Malaysian Medical Device Authority (MDA) and advised the public not to panic over reports on the rise in Covid-19 cases by panic buying or over-buying RTKs. — Bernama
