The mass distribution demanded it for months.
It was finally listened to by the government, put up to the wall by the Omicron variant: a decree published this Tuesday morning authorizes the sale of self-tests outside pharmacies and this, "exceptionally and until January 31, 2022".
Clearly, pharmacies will therefore lose - at least temporarily - their monopoly and supermarkets will also be authorized to sell these self-tests.
Currently, these are marketed at around 4 or 5 euros per unit in pharmacies.
“We're going to sell them at cost.
Here is a service expected by our customers, just like the masks and the gels ”, tweeted the president of System U, Dominique Schelcher, who had been at the forefront of the demand in recent weeks.
"We welcome the government's decision, which is a decision of common sense," added a spokesperson for Carrefour, which also announces its intention to sell these self-tests at cost price.
“It's good to broaden the front and increase availability.
We can clearly see with the Omicron variant that the self-test is today an essential tool for family reunions, ”commented Michel-Edouard Leclerc, CEO of E.Leclerc stores, to AFP.
Carrefour and Leclerc had made stocks, the others must wait for deliveries
Many brands are therefore already announcing their intention to sell these self-tests “at cost”.
"Concretely, this means that we will sell them for less than two euros per unit, whether individually or in boxes of five", announces a spokesperson for Auchan, who emphasizes that the sign " will do everything to be supplied before December 31 ”.
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In fact, these self-tests should arrive on the shelves within a few days, while the orders are placed with the suppliers.
Some signs, which had made stocks, will nevertheless be ready sooner.
This is particularly the case with Carrefour, which will market them "no later than Friday".
Elsewhere, we will have to let the New Year pass and wait ten days - this is the deadline mentioned by Lidl.
At Leclerc, we will also have to wait ten days for all the stores to be supplied, but “by New Year's Eve, I think there will be around a hundred E.Leclerc centers,” said Michel-Edouard Leclerc.
