[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Myunghwan] The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety announced on the 15th that the supply of self-test kits has been checked and there is sufficient stock. They also added that additional production is possible.
According to the Ministry, the current inventory and stock of self-test kits held by manufacturers amount to 44.29 million units. Ten manufacturers were found to be capable of producing up to 40 million units weekly.
In the first week of this month, 1.78 million self-test kits for COVID-19 were sold. Considering the current stock, production volume, and sales, the Ministry expects the supply situation to remain smooth going forward.
COVID-19 self-test kits can be purchased through online shopping malls, pharmacies, convenience stores registered as medical device sellers, and medical device retail stores.
The Ministry implemented distribution improvement measures from February to April to stabilize prices by limiting sales channels to pharmacies and convenience stores. However, these measures were lifted in May, allowing online sales. Additionally, until April, self-test kits could be sold at all convenience stores, but now sales are restricted to those registered as medical device sellers. Among approximately 50,000 convenience stores nationwide, about 23,000 (47%) are registered as medical device sellers.
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