The government says a national shortage of COVID-19 rapid antigen tests is due to the emergence of the Omicron variant, as it faces accusations of being unprepared for a rise in cases.

The government has been accused of failing to plan for a predicted surge in demand for the rapid tests as the country reopened and the testing regime shifted to the at-home testing kits.

Asked whether the government failed to adequately prepare, Finance Minister Simon Birmingham said the Omicron variant had caused a surge in cases far greater than had been modelled.

"Obviously, Omicron has once again changed the COVID landscape incredibly significantly," Mr Birmingham said.

"We're responding to that by procuring more rapid antigen tests, by refining the definitions around the necessities of testing and make sure it is targeted to those who most truly need it, and by ensuring that supports will be in place who need financial assistance in accessing rapid antigen tests." 

The country's testing system has struggled with an explosion in COVID cases, even as governments have dropped testing requirements for travellers and less serious exposures to the virus.

People have been unable to get a timely COVID test and others have given up on trying to get a PCR test altogether after repeatedly being turned away from overcrowded testing sites.

As people have turned towards rapid testing, retailers have been drained of supplies of kits, while a handful have sold the tests at massively marked-up prices.

In countries where tests are cheap and readily available, there have been anecdotes of Australians being asked by family members back home to bring handfuls of tests with them when they return.

The opposition, unions and community groups have called for the government to make rapid tests free or more affordable and accessible as they replace the PCR regime.

Tests are free in several countries, such as the United Kingdom, where kits can be ordered online to be delivered in the mail.

But Mr Morrison has repeatedly refused to make free tests widely available to the public.

Instead, the government is considering discounting tests for concession card holders, to be discussed at a meeting of the national cabinet tomorrow.

Opposition says government had months to plan for testing

Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese accused the government of failing to prepare for the rise in COVID cases that came with lifting borders and ending lockdowns.

"You can't get access to a PCR test because testing sites are closing and the queues go for six or eight hours," Mr Albanese said.

"You get told to get a rapid antigen test but you can't find one, if you do find one it's not affordable and they won't do anything about price gouging.

Mr Albanese said the government had known it would need to plan for rapid testing since September, when the Therapeutic Goods Administration recommended rapid antigen testing be made part of the testing regime from November onwards.

He also criticised Mr Morrison's refusal to make tests free for the public.

"This is a prime minister who has provided commuter car parks where there are no train stations, he has spent billions and billions of taxpayers' money on waste and rorts," Mr Albanese said.

"He can make things free for his mates, he can make things free whenever it's politically convenient for him."

Mr Morrison said yesterday that making tests free would "undercut" pharmacies and retailers currently restocking their shelves and that the government could no longer spend as freely as it did at the start of the pandemic.

However, the government is preparing to establish a rapid test subsidy or discount for concession card holders.

More than 84 million rapid tests have been ordered by the states for the coming weeks, with 50 million of those ordered by the NSW government.

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