Covid 19 Omicron: Chris Hipkins on rapid antigen tests: 'Change soon' on permission for retail sale

The Government has 7.2 million rapid antigen tests in New Zealand, and about 22.5 million are expected by the end of the month.

The Government supply of tests is made available to businesses deemed critical services, but some companies, like Foodstuffs, have managed to secure their own, which they want to sell.

The approval process for the tests in New Zealand had a high threshold for accuracy, but was "moving very quickly", Hipkins told Morning Report.

"We have a higher threshold than Australia does, and I note that Australia is now reviewing some of the tests they have approved because of concerns that they're not accurate enough and that they may be contributing to the spread of Covid-19 rather than the prevention of it.

"The threshold we have is that those tests have to be at least 80 per cent accurate because even at 80 per cent you're still potentially missing one in five cases.

"We won't approve tests that have a lower accuracy rate than that because they have the potential to do more harm than good."

By RNZ

Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins said the government was working through when to allow retail sales.

"I think that you'll see some change on that front fairly soon, but again, there are going to be international supply constraints.

"And I suspect they're not going to end up being cheap when retailers do end up selling them."

He would not say how soon the tests may be available in supermarkets. "I'm not making an announcement on that today - it's something that we're working through."

He said stockpiling tests available earlier would have meant many were unusable by now.

"Around that time that we were putting in our first orders for rapid antigen tests, many of the tests we were able to get hold of only had a shelf life of around six months or less, and so if we stockpiled them at that point many of those just wouldn't be able to be used now, they'd be heading to the landfill.

Hipkins said the Government supply of rapid antigen tests was targeted to those who need to be in work to keep things moving.

"Businesses are able to order and use their own tests when they can get them. But it is of course proving to be very challenging for them to get hold of them as well."

On the steps required for critical businesses to get hold of the tests, Hipkins said the process was to make sure those with the highest levels of needs had access to tests when they needed them.

"In the case of large businesses, for example, some of those large businesses have been getting their stocks of rapid antigen tests in advance to try and smooth that process."