Everyone in England will be offered free coronavirus tests twice a week from Friday, the British government announced in a statement on Monday.
The new testing regime is part of the government’s plan to reopen the economy in a way that would not spike business.
Rapid tests are currently only available to those most at risk and to people who have to leave home to work – including primary care workers, nursing home workers and residents, school children and their families.
From Friday everyone, including people who do not show symptoms, has access to a free test.
The tests will be available through a home delivery service, in test centers, workplaces and schools, the statement said.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said:
As we continue to make good progress with our vaccine program and with our roadmap to gently easing restrictions underway, regular rapid testing is even more important to ensure that those efforts are not wasted.
UK Health Minister Matt Hancock said in the statement that testing is crucial because “about one in three people with Covid-19 show no symptoms.”
“As we reopen society and resume parts of life that we have all very much missed, regular rapid tests will be fundamental to help us quickly detect positive cases and quell any outbreaks,” he added add to it.
Johnson will outline plans for further relaxation of the lockdown later in the day. These are expected to include some form of “Covid certification” for mass events and a new “traffic light” system for international travel, which is currently scheduled to resume from 17 May.
As part of that plan, those coming from “green” countries will not have to isolate, while those from “red” or “amber” countries will be obliged to follow mandatory quarantine measures.