By Robert Preidt HealthDay Reporter
HealthDay Reporter
TUESDAY, Could 3, 2022 (HealthDay Information) — The U.S. Meals and Drug Administration is warning Individuals to be careful for phony at-home, over-the-counter COVID-19 checks that look so much like the true issues.
The counterfeit check kits could put you liable to unknowingly spreading the illness or not searching for acceptable medical remedy, the company cautions.
The phonies “are made to seem like approved checks so the customers will assume they’re the true, FDA-authorized check,” the FDA stated in a assertion in regards to the fakes. “The FDA is worried in regards to the threat of false outcomes when folks use these unauthorized checks.”
When you get a false studying that you do not have the coronavirus, you could possibly inadvertently infect others at residence, at work or in medical and long-term care amenities. Additionally, you may not search or may discontinue remedy for COVID-19, the company defined.
Two fakes the FDA is aware of of are counterfeit Flowflex COVID-19 check kits and iHealth Antigen Speedy Check Kits — you could find extra particulars on methods to spot the fakes on the FDA assertion. The bundle and elements of the Flowflex imitation may simply mislead customers on the lookout for the approved Flowflex check.
Sure pink flags may make it easier to spot the counterfeits, in response to the FDA. They embody:
- Poor print high quality of photos or textual content on the skin field label or within the directions to be used included within the field.
- Lacking info on the skin field label for the product, such because the lot quantity, expiration date or barcode or QR codes.
- Grammatical or spelling errors in product labeling.
- Equipment elements that don’t match the content material description. For instance, lacking directions to be used, lacking or unfilled elements, totally different variety of elements than listed.
- The tradename for product printed on part or field labels differ from the approved labeling discovered on the FDA web site.
- The field label or printed directions to be used look totally different from the approved labeling discovered on the FDA web site.
The FDA has a listing of approved at-home OTC COVID-19 checks. It’s not conscious of any counterfeit checks distributed by federal authorities check distribution packages.
Continued
What must you do when you’ve got one?
When you suspect you will have a counterfeit check, don’t use it. Contact the distributor or retailer the place you obtain it to inform them that you’ve a counterfeit check, and in addition inform the producer of the approved check, the company stated.
The producer could ask for added info equivalent to images of the packaging to additional examine the problem. After offering any requested info to the distributor and/or producer, comply with the producer’s directions for returning or disposing of the check.
Speak to your well being care supplier for those who assume you had been examined with a counterfeit check and you’ve got considerations about your outcomes, the FDA suggested.
When you assume you had an issue with a COVID-19 check, you may report it by the FDA’s MedWatch Voluntary Reporting Kind.
Extra info
The U.S. Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention outlines what you’ll want to learn about COVID-19 testing.
SOURCE: U.S. Meals and Drug Administration, information launch, April 28, 2022
