Starting from March 30, Changzhou’s medical institutions will temporarily incorporate COVID-19 antigen testing reagents and corresponding tests into their service catalogue, according to the Municipal Healthcare Security Administration.

In line with the Notice on Setting the Price of the COVID-19 Antigen Testing released by the provincial authorities, public medical institutions will charge fees based on the testing item plus the testing reagent. The charge for the testing is capped at 15 yuan per person, and can be covered by the basic medical insurance. All antigen reagents will be purchased through the provincial platform and traded at zero profit margin.

Furthermore, public medical institutions that simply conduct antigen testing shall not charge outpatient examination fees (including general diagnosis & treatment fees and easy-access clinic fees).

Antigen testing can be performed faster and easier than nucleic acid testing but is less accurate. It is generally used to detect the virus in the early stages of infection. Results are typically available within 15 to 30 minutes of the sample being analyzed, meaning a patient on-site may have their results before leaving.