An antigen test kit designed to rapidly detect the new coronavirus was to be introduced as early as Friday -- mainly at outpatient facilities for returnees and people who may have had contact with an infected person -- in Tokyo and Osaka, where many people are infected with the virus.
The test kit was developed by Tokyo-based Fujirebio Inc. It has the potential to vastly increase testing capabilities, as the number of people who can be tested for the virus through a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test is limited to a maximum of 9,000 people a day.
An advisory body to the minister of the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry decided Wednesday that the test kit will be covered by public health insurance.
The antigen test costs 6,000 yen. The government intends for the recipient's portion of the fee to be covered by public funds when the test is conducted because a doctor suspects that person to be infected with the virus.
Mucus is collected from a person's nasal cavity, to check for protein fragments peculiar to the virus. A reagent is combined with the sample, and dripped onto a tiny measuring instrument. A positive result can be seen in about 15 minutes. If there is no reaction after 30 minutes, the result is judged to be negative.
According to the ministry, the accuracy of the antigen test is almost the same as that of the current PCR test when checking people with such symptoms as fever and coughing, because a certain amount of the virus is present in those people. The antigen test is considered as accurate as kits used to diagnose influenza.
Antigen tests will be performed on symptomatic individuals prior to PCR testing. If they test positive, the government will acknowledge them as having been diagnosed to be infected. However, if the virus level is low, the accuracy of the antigen test is low, so people who test negative will undergo additional checks such as receiving PCR tests.
"In the case of the PCR test, there is the issue of preventing infection over the period until the result is obtained," said Toru Kakuta, vice president of the Tokyo Medical Association. "Antigen testing can quickly identify and respond to infections."
Kakuta added, "If it becomes possible to have regular family doctors perform the test, the number of places people can go to be checked may increase."
"Enough kits to conduct about 400,000 tests are expected to be supplied by the end of this month," health minister Katsunobu Kato told reporters on Wednesday. "High priority will be given to outpatient facilities for returnees and people who may have been in contact with infected persons that are located in prefectures with a large number of newly infected people. By the end of this month we will be distributing the kits to those who want them nationwide."
Read more from The Japan News at https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/
