DIY testing kits are set to make a big difference to our fight against Covid – but the key to their success will be making them available for free, argues Rosie Collins (economist) on The Spinoff. Rapid antigen tests are nasal swabs taken at home which return results in about 15 minutes. They cost about $10-15 each, compared to $130 for a PCR test that goes to a laboratory. They are less sensitive than PCR tests, which made them less useful during our elimination phase. But Singapore, Australia and the UK have already rolled out RATs, and a culture of regular testing means far more cases are being picked up.
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