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As the number of corona patients increases, more people are looking for self-test kits.

Convenience stores sometimes sell self-test kits at a discount, but pharmacies complain.



Reporter Jae Hee-won heard the situation.



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convenience store employee fills the top of the medicine rack with a self-test kit.



A notice was also posted at the entrance saying that self-examination kits are sold at a 20% discount.



Originally, convenience stores could sell test kits only with permission, but when the government temporarily allowed sales everywhere until September, they got into a fight and entered the event.



[Song Gyo-jun / Convenience Store Manager: The sales of diagnostic kits this week have more than doubled compared to the beginning of the month.

The biggest advantage is that it can be sold 24 hours a day, anywhere.]



Other convenience store companies also put one in if you buy two, and even tell you which store has stock through a smartphone app.



Convenience store owners claim that it has the effect of increasing sales, which was not there, and reducing the cost burden on customers.



But pharmacists think differently.



Self-test kits are also medical devices, so accurate testing methods must be followed, but it can be difficult to explain properly at convenience stores.



There is also a regret that pharmacists are not recognized for the part that they have kept stocking up as the burden of pharmacists has stalled for a while.



[Kim Wi-hak/Pharmacist: Medical devices guarantee the safety of the people, and it is most important to ensure that they can be incorporated into other medical systems through accurate testing, but the appearance of concentrating only on sales…

.]



Explains that the government had no choice but to take exceptional measures to quickly supply test kits.



He also advised that the test kit is sensitive to moisture, so it should be stored in a dry place and that you must follow the instructions in the manual.



(Video coverage: Jeong Seong-hwa, video editing: Park Chun-bae, VJ: Park Hyeon-woo)