The Government Pharmaceutical Organization (GPO) insists it did not lower the specifications for the 8.5 million Chinese-made Covid-19 antigen test kits (ATKs) as it prepares to sign the purchase contract on Monday.
GPO managing director, Witoon Danwiboon, made the remarks yesterday, saying that the procurement was made in line with specs set by the National Health Security Office (NHSO), which clearly specified the ATKs were for home and not professional use.
Moreover, the specs only required that the ATKs meet standards set by the Food and Drug Administration, and they did not stipulate that the products be endorsed by the World Health Organization (WHO), Dr Witoon said. He added that the NHSO's subcommittee on the procurement of medical supplies and equipment had approved the prices for the ATKs submitted by the GPO on Thursday.
The subcommittee also gave the green light to Rajavithi Hospital to buy the ATKs from the GPO, he said. The GPO yesterday also met the bid winner to discuss preparations for delivery, quality checks of the products and the contract signing, Dr Witoon said.
The contract signing was delayed previously when the Rural Doctors Society (RDS) objected to the bid result, in which the LEPU Sars-CoV-2 Antigen Rapid Test product manufactured by Beijing Lepu Medical Technology Co was selected. The RDS raised concerns over the quality of the product, saying it wasn't approved by the WHO, which prompted Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha to order that only WHO-approved products should be procured. However, after new information emerged later that the WHO has not approved any home-use ATKs, the PM on Tuesday revoked the order, which allowed the procurement project to continue.
The product will be supplied at a cost of 70 baht per set by the World Medical Alliance (Thailand) Co, the importer of the test kit, together with Ostland Capital Co. Siriya Thepcharoen, a board member of World Medical Alliance (Thailand) Co, said that the ATKs made by Lepu Medical Technology have been widely used in Germany, Austria and several other countries in Europe.