Japan Rakuten launches COVID-19 PCR test kits... "Sales to corporations"

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] As demand for diagnostic testing rapidly increases in Japan due to the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), IT giant Rakuten has developed and launched a corporate-exclusive testing kit.

According to the Nihon Keizai Shimbun on the 21st, Rakuten announced the day before that it will sell a testing kit that can confirm whether certain genes characteristic of COVID-19 are present through genetic testing. The kit, developed by 'Genesia Healthcare,' a genetic testing institution directly invested in by Rakuten, is a genetic amplification (PCR) test kit, priced at 14,900 yen (approximately 170,000 KRW) per set.

Rakuten explained that unlike tests conducted at medical institutions, this kit cannot accurately determine positive or negative results; it only indicates the possibility of infection, and actual infection diagnosis must be made by a physician.

Rakuten plans to initially sell the kit to companies in the metropolitan area, including Tokyo, Saitama, Chiba, and Kanagawa prefectures, and will consider expanding sales regions after next month while monitoring the impact on the medical system. The target age for using this kit is set at 20 years and older, and users collect their own specimens and send them in, similar to stool testing.

Genesia Healthcare stated that excluding holidays, test results will be notified to the individual within three days after receiving the specimen on weekdays.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.