From Sardar Shahab
LONDON: Millions of COVID-19 tests able to detect the virus within 90 minutes will be rolled out in Britain, the country’s health minister said on Monday, after criticism there has not been enough testing especially in nursing homes.
Last week, one of Britain’s largest care home providers CareUK said the government is unable to meet its promise to regularly test staff and residents in care homes after problems were discovered with the kits currently being used.
Capacity will be boosted at hospitals, care homes and laboratories starting from next week, the government said on Monday, comprising 5.8 million tests using DNA and 450,000 swab tests. Neither will need to be administered by a health professional. “The fact these tests can detect flu as well as COVID-19 will be hugely beneficial as we head into winter, so patients can follow the right advice to protect themselves and others,” said health minister Matt Hancock. “We are on track to deliver half a million tests a day by the end of October but new technologies like these two will help us to accelerate that,” he said.
Separately, the publicly-funded National Health Service said it would be offering “COVID-friendly” treatments to cancer patients, including drugs that do not have a big impact on the immune system. Britain’s healthcare system has come under severe strain during peaks in the country’s COVID-19 outbreak, which has killed more than 46,000 people, the fourth highest toll in the world, according to a Reuters tally collated on Monday. The government will act if the coronavirus spreads through London as it has done in other parts of Britain, junior business minister Nadhim Zahawi said on Monday.
“If we see the virus spreading in a particular way in London, as we’ve seen in Manchester and West Yorkshire where it’s spreading through people coming into another person’s home, then we will discuss that… and we will not hesitate to act,” he told LBC radio.
Earlier, Millions of COVID-19 tests able to detect the virus within 90 minutes will be rolled out to British hospitals, care homes and laboratories to boost capacity in the coming months, the country’s health minister said on Monday. They will comprise 5.8 million tests using DNA and 450,000 swab tests. Neither will need to be administered by a health professional, said Matt Hancock. “The fact these tests can detect flu as well as COVID-19 will be hugely beneficial as we head into winter, so patients can follow the right advice to protect themselves and others,” said health minister Matt Hancock.
Separately, the publicly-funded National Health Service said it would be offering “COVID-friendly” treatments to cancer patients, including drugs that do not have a big impact on the immune system. Britain’s healthcare system has come under severe strain during peaks in the country’s COVID-19 outbreak, which has killed more than 46,000 people, the fourth highest toll in the world, according to media tally collated on Sunday.
Moreover, as new coronavirus travel restrictions kick in across Europe, a survey showed at least half of German, British and French travellers would rather cancel a holiday than quarantine afterwards, take a test upon arrival, or wear a mask outdoors. The survey, carried out on July 13-23 and whose results were shared exclusively with Reuters by market research firm YouGov, showed two-thirds of Germans who normally travel abroad would cancel a holiday if they needed a test upon arrival. Germany this week imposed mandatory coronavirus testing for travellers from 130 countries. In France, which implemented testing upon arrival last Saturday for travellers from 12 countries, half of those who normally holiday abroad said they would cancel rather than take a test.
The same proportion would call off a holiday if they had to wear a mask outdoors.
