Matt Hancock last night offered families hope on care home testing – but was told by campaigners to move much faster. The Health Secretary has vowed to ring-fence a supply of coronavirus swabs for family visitors in the run-up to Christmas. And he said a pilot scheme at 20 sites would end the need for ‘prison-style’ … Read more
Coronavirus swabs should be analysed in batches to speed up the Government’s lagging testing programme, experts say. The method, known as pooled testing, involves combining multiple swabs in a batch into a single test tube. If Covid-19 is not detected in the combined sample, all patients are presumed to be negative. If any viral particles are … Read more
A drive-in Covid-19 testing centre caused chaos as hundreds of people who were queuing for swabs were turned away after not being sent QR codes to confirm their appointments. People were unable to get a coronavirus test at the site in Catford, southeast London, yesterday because they were not in possession of a QR code. A … Read more
Covid tests will have to be rationed, Matt Hancock admitted yesterday. In a humiliating climbdown, he said a ‘priority list’ would ensure care homes, hospitals, schools and key staff had enough. In a torrid session in the Commons, the Health Secretary was also forced to admit the current critical shortages could drag on for weeks. … Read more
Trained sniffer dogs can detect coronavirus in human swab samples with 94 per cent success rate, study shows Researchers from Germany trained army dogs to sniff out infected samples Canines are known to be able to smell signs of various diseases and even cancer Dogs could potentially be used alongside laboratory tests to help stop … Read more
A British-made saliva test for the coronavirus could replace swabs and help Boris Johnson meet the 24-hour result target time. The Government is reportedly in talks with epigenetics company Chronomics about its test – two months after the US approved a similar one. The kit, which requires someone to spit into a tube, is easier … Read more
Testing efforts have been ramped up as the Government has announced it will trial antigen swabs than can tell if someone has coronavirus ‘on the spot’, and 10million antibody tests have been ordered. Around 4,000 patients in a pilot study in Hampshire will be the first to try the new antigen test, which looks for signs … Read more
The Government was facing fresh questions over its coronavirus testing regime tonight as the number carried out fell by more than 40 per cent in just four days. Some 69,463 took place in the 24 hours to 9am today, according to Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick. That figure is just 57 per cent of the 122,327 … Read more