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Health Secretary Matt Hancock has admitted there are “challenges” with the coronavirus testing system following a “sharp increase” in demand.
Speaking in the House of Commons on Tuesday, Hancock said the government was “working hard” to fix problems with the availability of COVID-19 tests, but admitted it could take “a matter of weeks.”
It revealed that tests now had to be prioritized and also hinted at possible future rationing of tests.
“The entire Chamber knows that there are operational challenges and we are working hard to solve them,” said the Secretary of Health.
“We have seen a sharp increase in people showing up for a test, including those who are not eligible.”
The government has come under increasing pressure from NHS hospital trusts, public health officials and parliamentarians over the unavailability of coronavirus tests in some areas.
Hancock said he would not rule out higher prioritization of testing to ensure hospitals and nursing homes can get the tests they need.
Currently, anyone showing symptoms of coronavirus can undergo an NHS test, as well as those who have been asked by a hospital or city hall to get tested.
“Throughout this pandemic, we have prioritized testing according to needs,” the health secretary told deputies.
“During the summer when demand was low, we were able to meet all the requirements to test whether they were priorities or not.
“But, as demand has increased, we have to prioritize once again.
“I don’t avoid decisions about prioritization. They are not always comfortable, but they are important.
“The top priority is, and always has been, acute clinical care.
“The next priority is social care, where we now send more than 100,000 tests a day because we have all seen the risks this virus poses in nursing homes.
“We will fully establish an updated prioritization and do not rule out additional steps to ensure that our tests are used in accordance with those priorities.
“It is a choice that we must make.”
Labor’s shadow health secretary, Jonathan Ashworth, asked why Hancock did not use the summer to “significantly expand” the laboratory’s testing capacity, before students return to schools and people to workplaces. job.
“When schools reopen and people return to workplaces and social distancing becomes more difficult, infections increase,” he told Hancock.
“So the additional demand on the system was unavoidable.”
Mr. Hancock replied, “I don’t deny that it is a huge challenge and when you have a free service it is inevitable that the demand will increase.”
“The challenge is to make sure we prioritize the tests we have as a nation for those who need it most.”
Jeremy Hunt, Conservative chairman of the House of Commons health committee and Hancock’s predecessor as health secretary, described how some of his constituents in Surrey had been sent to Bristol or the Isle of Wight for testing.
Mr. Hancock responded, “I think we can solve this problem in a matter of weeks.”
He added: “We are managing to deliver record capacity, but as he well knows, the demand is also high and the answer to that is to make sure we have a prioritization so that the people who need it most can get the evidence they need.”
