COVID rapid tests may be trickier to find at pharmacies this fall. Here’s what you need to know

Montreal pharmacist Aleck Brodeur just got a shipment of COVID-19 rapid tests. Ever since the temperature has been dropping, more people have wanted to buy them, he says. 

“They go out so fast. We always have to order some every day, and we keep increasing the supply that we order, but they’re still all going,” he said. 

He expects this shipment — 13 kits in total — to be gone by the end of the day. In Quebec, there were 3,882 new laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19 between Sept. 15 and Sept. 21.

Unlike last fall, Brodeur doesn’t have free rapid tests to hand out. The federal government stopped providing free COVID rapid tests to provinces and territories in May. 

In a statement to CBC News, a spokesperson for Health Canada said it is no longer procuring rapid tests en-masse. The agency also says there are no plans to replenish the federal inventory after it is depleted. 

That means pharmacies have been purchasing the tests from suppliers and selling them, like any other over-the-counter merchandise. Pharmacists say the supply is sometimes thin.

“We kind of hunt them down and make sure they’re Health Canada approved,” said Kyro Maseh, a Toronto-area pharmacist.

Artron Laboratories Inc., which manufactures COVID test kits, said in an email it has increased test production in the past few months, and is expecting to ramp it up even more for the upcoming winter season.

Where can you get your hands on COVID tests?

You might need to visit several pharmacies before you’re able to find one that carries rapid tests — free or for sale.

While some pharmacies in Quebec and Ontario have run out of free tests, the situation is different elsewhere. Alberta public health says they’re still handing out free tests from the federal stockpile at participating pharmacies until the supply runs out. 

While Quebec pharmacies may not have any more free rapid tests, the province is handing out free rapid tests at certain clinics or service centres. 

PCR testing is also available in some provinces for those at higher risk of severe illness from COVID-19. The results just take a bit longer to come in: at least 24 hours.

If you have expired tests, experts say most work for a few months after the expiry date, but they also warn false negatives are a risk: if you test negative on an expired test, but you’re still experiencing symptoms, it’s possible you may still have COVID — even if the expired test didn’t detect it.

“If it’s positive, you’re definitely positive. If it’s negative with symptoms, that’s when you need to worry about using expired tests,” said Dr. Dawn Bowdish, a professor of immunology at McMaster University and the executive director at the Firestone Institute for Respiratory Health, in Hamilton. 

Should we even be testing for COVID anymore?

If you’re otherwise healthy and young, chances are, whether you test positive for COVID or you have the common cold, you’ll be given the same advice: don’t go to work or school, stay at home.

But for those who are more vulnerable to severe illness, an early positive test can change the treatment options — and possibly, health outcomes.

“Older adults and the immunocompromised who are at high risk of hospitalization should get antiviral drugs within a day or no more than two of becoming ill,” Bowdish said.

“If they don’t know they have COVID, they can’t get the drugs that might keep them out of hospital.”

Latest numbers from select public health and hospital laboratories across Canada suggest COVID-19 levels are holding steady nation-wide, but Dr. Donald Vinh, an infectious disease specialist and medical microbiologist at the McGill University Health Centre, thinks the numbers don’t reflect what’s actually going on in the community.

“What we know is that this is an underestimate of what’s going on,” he said.

There’s no doubt in his mind about whether widespread testing is still worthwhile. COVID, he says, can have serious impacts on vulnerable populations — and there are also treatments available.

“Instead of saying, well, we’re four years out, do we still need tests for SARS-CoV-2? I would say we, in fact, should be having broad availability of tests for pathogens which have high impact in high-risk populations and for which we can give therapy,” said Vinh. 

In the U.S., the federal government has re-opened a program that allows any household to receive up to four free COVID test kits by mail. American public health authorities are urging the public to take a quick test before visiting with friends and family during the holiday season.

Bowdish, the immunologist, says she would like to see something similar in Canada. 

“People do change their behaviours and decisions if they know they have an infection that might cause an older adult or someone who’s vulnerable to get seriously ill.”