Response time for “key challenge” tests for HSE



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The health service faces a “key challenge” to speed up the response time for coronavirus test results once the delay is eliminated later this week, Health Minister Simon Harris said.

Harris said the Health Service Executive still has “work to do” to increase the speed at which it can produce test results among the broader community.

However, the Minister has said the tests will only be one of several factors to determine whether restrictions to slow the spread of the virus can be eased in three weeks.

The restrictions will remain in effect until May 5, and Harris and Dr. Tony Holohan, the Medical Director, raised the possibility of easing some measures at that time.

But both said the social distancing restrictions would remain in place until a coronavirus vaccine is found. A team from Oxford University has expressed confidence that a vaccine could be ready by September, although other experts say it could take a year or more.

Last night it was announced that 31 more people have died from Covid-19 in the Republic. There are now 10,647 known cases of coronavirus in the state, and 365 people have died from the virus.

Health officials announced another 527 confirmed cases on Monday, along with an additional 465 positive cases from tests sent to a German laboratory to eliminate the delay.

Testing backlog

HSE Executive Director Paul Reid said the delay in testing had been reduced from a high point of about 35,000 people expecting results to about 11,000.

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