immunity certificate
" However, coronavirus testing has so far had mixed success around the world. Spain was recently forced to return tens of thousands of rapid coronavirus tests from a Chinese company after they were found to provide inconsistent results." Wrongly used. antibody test should be used 7 days after infection so not good for early detection. More accurate than PCR after 7 days, because PCR require lung sample, not throat sample.
"Some tests have also reportedly demonstrated false positives, detecting antibodies to other, much more common coronaviruses." False positives can be addressed by backing up with PCR testing at the lung. To make it safe, better have PCR testing at both lung and throat samples, and retested when symptoms appear or after 1 week. So the immunity certificate should only be valid for 1 week with PCR and rapid testing, only 1 day for rapid testing.
https://www.businessinsider.my/coronavirus-germany-covid-19-immunity-certificates-testing-social-distancing-lockdown-2020-3?r=US&IR=T
Germany could issue thousands of people coronavirus ‘immunity certificates’ so they can leave the lockdown early
States across Germany are in lockdown, with strict quarantines imposed in some parts of the country.
However, researchers at the Helmholtz Centre for Infection
Research in Braunschweig want to send out hundreds of thousands of
antibody tests over the coming weeks that could allow people to break
free of the lockdowns, Der Spiegel reported on Friday.
If the project is approved, the researchers will test 100,000 people at a time starting in early April, Der Spiegel said.
The tests are designed to detect whether a person has developed
antibodies to the COVID-19 virus, indicating that they were at one time
a carrier and may have built up immunity.
A positive test could allow the person to leave the lockdown while many positive tests could allow governments to ease restrictions in areas with “herd immunity.”
Gerard Krause, the epidemiologist leading the project, told the magazine that people who are immune “could be given a type of vaccination card that, for example, allows them to be exempted” from “restrictions on their work.”
Germany has one of the lowest COVID-19 death rates in the world, which some experts and commentators have said is a result of the extensive testing rolled out by Chancellor Angel Merkel’s government.
The United Kingdom has similar plans to roll out antibody testing to loosen its lockdown. Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government has ordered millions of at-home coronavirus testing kits that, if approved for use, could be sent to frontline workers over the coming weeks and sold in pharmacies and through online retailers like Amazon.
However, coronavirus testing has so far had mixed success around the world. Spain was recently forced to return tens of thousands of rapid coronavirus tests from a Chinese company after they were found to provide inconsistent results.
Some tests have also reportedly demonstrated false positives, detecting antibodies to other, much more common coronaviruses.
Scientists also remain unsure about the extent to which past infection with the virus can prevent reinfection and for how long immunity will remain.
However, Dr. Anthony Fauci, a top US expert on infectious diseases, has said he would be “willing to bet anything that people who recover are really protected against reinfection.”
"Some tests have also reportedly demonstrated false positives, detecting antibodies to other, much more common coronaviruses." False positives can be addressed by backing up with PCR testing at the lung. To make it safe, better have PCR testing at both lung and throat samples, and retested when symptoms appear or after 1 week. So the immunity certificate should only be valid for 1 week with PCR and rapid testing, only 1 day for rapid testing.
https://www.businessinsider.my/coronavirus-germany-covid-19-immunity-certificates-testing-social-distancing-lockdown-2020-3?r=US&IR=T
- Getty
- German researchers want to send out hundreds of thousands of coronavirus-antibody tests over the coming weeks, Der Spiegel reported.
- People who test positive for the antibodies could be given an “immunity certificate” that would allow them to leave their coronavirus lockdown early.
- Other countries, including the United Kingdom, are planning mass testing to ease lockdowns.
- Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.
States across Germany are in lockdown, with strict quarantines imposed in some parts of the country.
If the project is approved, the researchers will test 100,000 people at a time starting in early April, Der Spiegel said.
A positive test could allow the person to leave the lockdown while many positive tests could allow governments to ease restrictions in areas with “herd immunity.”
Gerard Krause, the epidemiologist leading the project, told the magazine that people who are immune “could be given a type of vaccination card that, for example, allows them to be exempted” from “restrictions on their work.”
Germany has one of the lowest COVID-19 death rates in the world, which some experts and commentators have said is a result of the extensive testing rolled out by Chancellor Angel Merkel’s government.
The United Kingdom has similar plans to roll out antibody testing to loosen its lockdown. Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government has ordered millions of at-home coronavirus testing kits that, if approved for use, could be sent to frontline workers over the coming weeks and sold in pharmacies and through online retailers like Amazon.
However, coronavirus testing has so far had mixed success around the world. Spain was recently forced to return tens of thousands of rapid coronavirus tests from a Chinese company after they were found to provide inconsistent results.
Some tests have also reportedly demonstrated false positives, detecting antibodies to other, much more common coronaviruses.
Scientists also remain unsure about the extent to which past infection with the virus can prevent reinfection and for how long immunity will remain.
However, Dr. Anthony Fauci, a top US expert on infectious diseases, has said he would be “willing to bet anything that people who recover are really protected against reinfection.”
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