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A health minister hailed the UK’s approval of an coronavirus immunity test as a game changer that could allow more people to go to work with confidence, although the government has yet to buy any of the tests.
Edward Argar said the test developed by Roche “appears to be extremely reliable and receives the green light from Public Health England testers.”
Initially, only patients in the hospital could be tested in the UK. The tests were then expanded to include NHS staff and home care staff. Now up to 10 million essential workers and their families showing coronavirus symptoms can request a test through a government website.
The essential worker list is the same as that used to allow the children of key workers to continue going to school during the closure. In addition to health and social work personnel, the list includes teachers, judges, some lawyers, religious personnel, and journalists who provide public broadcasting services.
Also included are local officials, the police, armed service personnel, fire and rescue service personnel, immigration officers, and prison and probation personnel. Some of the private sector staff also qualify, including veterinarians, food production, essential financial services and information technology, as well as those working in the oil, gas, electricity and water sectors.
Matthew Weaver
He said the government wanted to get the test up and running quickly because it could make a significant difference.
However, he acknowledged that the United Kingdom had not purchased evidence as the government was still in talks with Roche about acquiring it.
Speaking at BBC Breakfast, Argar said: “We are eager to get as many as we can and bring them mainly to the front line on the broadcast and more broadly, because as the prime minister says it has the potential to change the rules of the game. . “
He was unable to give a date when they would be available to the NHS and then wider use by the public.
But he said they would make a big difference, as scientific evidence indicated that it could provide a degree of immunity.
He said this could “really change the way it can work” because people could be sure that everyone can no longer get coronavirus or pass it on to others.
Antibody tests could be of great benefit as the country emerges from the blockade because the presence of antibodies against the virus in the blood shows who has had it. However, whether a person is immune, and if so, how long that immunity lasts, is not yet known.
The test is likely to be used to determine if certain areas of the country, or people in certain professions, have had Covid-19, but it still won’t give people an immunity passport so they can restart their social lives.
This Roche antibody test is not the homemade finger prick test that created a wave of excitement when Professor Sharon Peacock of Public Health England told a committee of MPs on March 25 that it would be available for purchase in a matter of days. .
The University of Oxford was testing various versions of the home antibody tests, which at the time look like pregnancy tests. All, however, did not reach the norm.
The best ones were said to be 70% accurate and most not more than 50%. Health Secretary Matt Hancock, who had bought 3 million of them, was said to be seeking a refund of the government money.
Roche’s test was approved in early May by the EU and by the US Food and Drug Administration. USA As 99.8% specific for Covid-19, so it is not confused with antibodies against other cold-causing coronaviruses and is 100% sensitive, so it will collect any antibody that is present.
It will work on blood samples taken by a healthcare professional at least 14 days after a person develops Covid-19.
The Elecsys Anti-Sars-CoV-2 serological test is processed in laboratories that use Roche analyzers that hospitals already have. Roche says its fully automated systems can provide results in approximately 18 minutes for a single test, with the ability to do 300 tests per hour, depending on the analyzer.
Professor John Newton, national coordinator of the UK coronavirus testing program, told Telegraph experts at PHE’s Porton Down Labs that they had evaluated the test and confirmed the accuracy to 100%.
“This is a very positive development, because such a highly specific antibody test is a very reliable marker of past infections,” he said.
“This in turn may indicate some immunity to future infections, although the extent to which the presence of antibodies indicates immunity remains unclear.”
Scientists hope to obtain valuable data on the spread of the pandemic through mass antibody tests, which could reveal how many people have had the virus but without experiencing any symptoms. Looking at those particular groups will help in the search for vaccines and treatments.
