Concession card holders said they found it impossible to track down rapid antigen tests on the first day of a federal government program offering access to free tests.
The scheme, which allows pensioners and concession card holders to access up to 10 free rapid antigen tests over three months through their chemist, had a difficult start on Monday, with supply issues hampering anyone attempting to procure the tests.
Rosanna, who asked to remain anonymous, lives in rural Victoria and said she needed rapid antigen tests to protect her father Lorry, who is critically ill.
But there were none available at any of the pharmacies within an hour’s drive from her home, leaving the family in a precarious situation.
“We’re really scared of what’s going to happen to him, and we’re furious with the government for the position that they’ve left Australians in,” she said.
“We are really quite devastated that the vulnerable people in our community have been completely dismissed [and] dehumanised.
“It just feels like my father is expendable to this government.”
Rosanna’s father has stage four bowel cancer and attends chemotherapy every two weeks.
She said he needs the tests for himself and the carers he depends on, and that even if the local pharmacies were supplied, she feared the tests would be gone by the time she gets there.
“Even the 10 tests offered over three months is not enough to keep my dad going, and we can’t afford to buy them in bulk. And even if we could, we can’t find them.
“The whole scheme is, in my opinion, absolutely ridiculous. It’s not enough that the vulnerable in our communities need to rely on it.”
Rosanna said the situation was so critical she has decided to move in with her father to be able to care for him.
“It means he’s taking a gamble on every person that walks through the door, as to whether or not he will make it through the next month. We just feel completely forgotten.”
An NDIS recipient from Brisbane said his eight-year-old immunocompromised daughter was at great risk without the tests, and told Guardian Australia the program was a “complete shambles”.
“The fact that they couldn’t come up with a process in time seems pretty risky. And it’s worse when you speak to pharmacies and they sound despondent.”
The recipient, who asked to remain anonymous, said without the tests the family needed to isolate themselves to protect her.
“It’s really frustrating, and now we have a dilemma in that we need to go to the hospital regularly but it’s too dangerous, and we have not worked out how we’re going to manage it without the tests.
“There’s not much we can do, we’re basically homebound now.”
He said he’d been searching for tests since early January.
“I was a bit shocked when I couldn’t find any, because when the government announced a set date for the scheme, I thought they would have the tests available.”
It is a similar situation to the one faced by Connor Alexander from Melbourne, who lives on a disability pension with a chronic illness, and has been scrambling for the free tests, to no avail.
“It’s left me feeling very stressed. None of us want to get sick but I just I want to be prepared as best I can. I don’t want to have to line up and get a PCR test every time I get a cough or a cold and risk getting sick while waiting.
“Its infuriating, honestly. This should have been taken care of a long time ago, and it’s getting worse as more people get sick.”
Alexander went to “at least four or five” chemists on Monday, searching for the tests, and found none.
“It can’t keep going on like this, we need to have some sort of solution to make this happen faster.”
The federal opposition leader, Anthony Albanese, said it was “extraordinary” that pensioners and concession card holders were unable to find the tests on the first day of the program.
“We all knew that once we opened up … elimination tests would be an important part of the response to keep people safe, and the government simply didn’t do anything about it,” he told Radio National.
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg told Sky News supply chain “pressures” were being felt all over the world.
“We’ve seen seven million [tests] arrive into Victoria in just recent weeks,” Frydenberg said.
“We have, right through this pandemic, helped fund and secure tests.”
