Covid test shortages threaten New Year’s Eve celebrations in England

Pharmacies report shortages of lateral flow tests after Christmas holidays hit supply chains

Shoppers walk along Oxford street in London, England where a decrease in footfall has been reported amid a recent surge in Covid-19 cases due to the Omicron variant. Photograph: Hollie Adams/Getty Images

Shortages of rapid lateral flow tests (LFTs) and lack of walk-in PCR test slots across England are threatening to undermine the British government’s plans for New Year’s Eve celebrations to go ahead unimpeded.

Pharmacies across England reported having run out of test kits for distribution to the public before Christmas, and have been unable to receive more as the supply chain has been disrupted by the Christmas holidays.

Some community pharmacies in rural areas said they had not received deliveries of LFTs since early last week, although many remained closed on Monday and Tuesday because of the extended bank holidays.

People turning to the National Health Service website were also out of luck. On Tuesday morning it said no delivery slots for LFTs were available, for the second day in a row. But by mid-afternoon deliveries were again being offered, with a warning that the kits could take three days to arrive.

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The NHS site also indicated that there were no walk-in LFT or PCR tests available anywhere in England on Tuesday morning. By early afternoon the site was indicating availability of PCR tests in most parts of England, although some areas were close to running out.

The UK Health Security Agency said it encouraged people to revisit the sites “every few hours” if they were unable to order tests, as more would become available, and to use any tests they may already have before ordering or collecting more kits.

A spokesperson said: “Despite unprecedented demand, we are continuing to supply millions of rapid lateral flow tests every day. Our total delivery capacity has doubled to 900,000 test kits per day since Saturday December 18th so more people can order tests.

“During periods of exceptional demand there may be temporary pauses in ordering or receiving tests, to ensure we manage distribution across the system and support changing requirements for LFD [lateral flow device] and PCR tests, and delivery capacity was reduced over Christmas and the bank holiday.”

Tests were available in all regions of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, according to the site.

Clubs and pubs

On Monday the government declined to impose further Covid curbs in England, allowing nightclubs and pubs to open for New Year’s Eve and giving other mass events the go-ahead.

Sajid Javid, the health secretary, said; “Of course people should remain cautious as we approach new year celebrations and take a lateral flow test if that makes sense.”

Covid cases in England reached a new high of 113,628 on Christmas Day, and 1,281 people were admitted to hospital, the highest daily figure since mid-February.

Official data on new Covid cases, which was delayed over the festive period, also showed 98,515 new confirmed cases reported in England on Monday. Data for December 26th from England and Wales combined revealed 108,893 new cases reported.

Case numbers have also hit new highs in Scotland, where 8,252 cases were reported for Christmas Day, 11,030 on Boxing Day and 10,562 on Monday.

Demand for tests has soared during the Christmas holiday period, with positive test results reaching record levels in England as the Omicron variant continues to spread rapidly.

It further increased last week after the government cut the self-isolation period for England from 10 to seven days for those with negative LFT results on day six and seven. The 10-day self-isolation period remains in force in Wales and Scotland.

Struggling

Pharmacies are limited to receiving one carton of tests a day. The Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee said its members were struggling to meet demand, and asked for the public to be patient with pharmacists, who were working extremely hard over the Christmas period.

Wes Streeting, the shadow health secretary, said: “People are trying to do the right thing, follow the government’s own advice, and test themselves regularly, but are prevented by the Conservative government’s incompetence.

“They need to get a grip and provide enough tests so people can keep themselves and everyone else safe.” – Guardian