The UK will start offering COVID antibody testing to the general public for the first time

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August 22 (Reuters) – The UK will begin offering COVID-19 antibody tests to the general public next week for the first time, British media reported on Sunday.

The new government program is intended to produce data on antibody protections for people after infection by different coronavirus variants, according to program details published by various media outlets, including Sky News and BBC.

As of Tuesday, anyone 18 years of age or older in England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland will be eligible for the program when they receive a PCR test, Sky News reported.

Participants, who test positive for COVID-19, will be sent two finger-prick tests to complete them at home to inform the UK Health Safety Agency of the antibody response to different variants. of the coronavirus, the BBC reported.

The first of these tests should be done as soon as possible after the patient gets a positive result and the second should be done 28 days later.

Up to 8,000 people will be enrolled in the program, according to the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), which runs it, Sky News said. UKHSA, working alongside NHS Test and Trace, will use the results to monitor antibody levels in positive cases.

Report by Kanishka Singh in Bengaluru Edition by Chris Reese

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