Coffee, noodles and coronavirus tests: Japanese vending machines sell test kits during the pandemic
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TOKYO – Vending machines on almost any street corner in Japan sell everything from sodas to ice cream and warm noodles.
Now consumers in Tokyo and a neighboring prefecture can find machines vending coronavirus test kits.
Vending machines in five locations in Tokyo and Kanagawa prefecture are selling polymerase chain reaction, or PCR, test kits for 3,500 yen, about $33. The price is set to increase by nearly $10 on Monday.
Tokyo, Kanagawa and two other prefectures that comprise the greater Tokyo metro area are under a state of emergency until March 7 due to a winter surge in new coronavirus…
