'Kits are on the way' says Kenney: yet Albertans, pharmacists struggle for COVID-19 testing

CALGARY -

Some Albertans who want to verify if they are positive for COVID-19 are struggling to do that with scarce rapid antigen test kits, and PCR test appointments through Alberta Health Services (AHS) are being booked days away.

During the first briefing of the new year Premier Jason Kenney says that 15 million rapid antigen tests have been purchased and will be in the province by the end of the month, and 4.3 million of those will be sent to K-12 schools for the first day back at school Monday.

"I want to reassure Albertans that the more that more of these kits are on the way," said Kenney.

Since the first batch was distributed before the holidays, Kenney says another one million arrived in Alberta last week, with shipments of three million tests each week through January in addition for four million tests provided by the federal government.

With a UCP leadership review vote days away, a new poll shows Alberta Premier Jason Kenney stuck around 30 per cent

ACCESS CHALLENGING

However access to testing continued to be challenging.

Millie Hartviksen developed some symptoms affecting her sinus and voice early in the week.

She was not one of the 800,000 Albertans who rushed to receive free rapid antigen test kits after Dec. 17, but when she inquired at pharmacies there were none left.

Hartviksen wants to visit her 96-year-old mother who is hospitalized at the South Health Campus and needs to know if she's carrying the virus.

"She's in this bed all by herself all day long," she said.

She drove from her Springbank home to Cochrane for a PCR (polymerase chain reaction) test through AHS and results may take 24 - 72 hours.

She says a rapid test would given her peace of mind to visit her mom once the nature of her symptoms are resolved.

"I feel really bad. (I would) like to see her, she's still my mom," said Hartviksen.

Andrea Khoury's family has also struggled to find rapid test kits after her teenage daughter developed symptoms on Dec. 27.

Every pharmacy she checked with was out of the free rapid antigen test kits provided by the Alberta government and her daughter's PCR test appointment was booked for early January.

Eventually a relative gave them some rapid tests that were issued through her work, but Khoury said it shouldn't be such an ordeal for Albertans to have access to any kind of testing.

"We've done our best to be cautious throughout this entire situation," said Khoury.

She also says the province needs to do a better job of making sure that rapid tests are available.

"Either for purchase or for free, and if you can't get a rapid test at your pharmacy, there needs to be someplace that you can go and be tested for this so that we can all be back to our lives at some point in time."

PHARMACISTS FIELDING PHONE CALLS

Pharmacists are bearing the brunt of the demand.

"We are fielding a lot of phone calls for these swabs," Jason Chan Remillard, pharmacist and owner of the Pharmasave in Calgary Brentwood neighbourhood.

In some cases there is a third option for those who want to purchase a private antigen or PCR test through their pharmacy, however, those tests are reserved for those without symptoms (asymptomatic) and are not for close contacts.

"If someone does have symptoms for protection of us and our families we can't have you in the store to test here it would be a call to 811 or to do the online assessment through Alberta Health Services to see if you qualify for the PCR tests through the government.