Pune-based Mylab Discovery Solutions will launch India’s first self-use rapid antigen test (RAT) kit for Covid-19 for Rs 250 per pack. The product has been cleared by Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).
The test results will have to be uploaded by home users themselves through an app that is available on Google play store and Apple store. The data in the app of the mobile phone will be centrally captured in a secure server which is connected with the ICMR COVID-19 testing portal, where all data will be eventually stored, ICMR said in an advisory.
Named CoviSelf, the self-use test can be used by symptomatic individuals and immediate contacts of confirmed cases as per ICMR guidelines without the need for sample collection by a healthcare professional. The test kits can be purchased without a prescription from local pharmacies and online channel partners. This is expected to ease pressure on already overburdened testing labs and reduce delays in testing, which is more than 72 hours in some parts of the country.
The ICMR advisory says that all individuals who test positive may be considered as true positives and no repeat testing is required. However, all RAT negative symptomatic individuals will be treated as suspect Covid-19 cases and are advised to follow the ICMR/ Health ministry home isolation protocol while awaiting the RTPCR test result. It also warns against indiscriminate testing.
“With CoviSelf, we are sharing the power of testing early with the citizens. It will save thousands of lives. For India, we will make millions of kits available at fraction of the cost of such kits in the US,” Hasmukh Rawal, Managing Director of Mylab Discovery Solutions said.
