Why are most 3 hour ‘rapid PCR’ tests NOT valid for UK arrivals testing?

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• TGLoyalty says:

  1 Dec1 December 05:28

  Only 50% of the U.K. labs can identify the S Gene drop out – a quick Alpha / Omicron identifier

  Perhaps their ‘rapid’ test facility can’t and therefore is ineligible for arrivals testing?

• Rich says:

  1 Dec1 December 05:38

  I don’t think S-gene dropout is the issue. Either you’re positive or negative, and that’s good enough to decide whether you’ need to stay in isolation. Don’t need to know the variant for that.

  S-gene dropout isn’t good enough to properly identify Omicron. For that, you need full sequencing, in a timely manner so your contacts can be put into isolation.

  I think 10 hours would be workable for a lot of people. Get tested, go home, wake up to your result.

  • pauldb says:

    1 Dec1 December 06:22

    As far as the law is concerned, it only matters if Omicrom is “suspected”, and S-gene dropout is deemed enough for that.

    • abc says:

      1 Dec1 December 11:56

      I think this is only the case if there is actually a travel history to southern Africa or contact to another (suspected) omicron case (at least currently, will probably change at some point), as various other variants (eg alpha) also have this S-gene dropout.

  • Rich says:

    1 Dec1 December 06:36

    Ah, didn”t know that. Thanks.

• Andrew says:

  1 Dec1 December 05:59

  And with the US on the brink of announcing more stringent testing and isolation measures, there goes the travel industry until the Spring. Makes that dual takeoff event at LHR slightly bitter sweet now. I wonder if the government will bring back a targeted furlough scheme for the sector.

  • Gareth says:

    1 Dec1 December 07:12

    Out of interest what’s your evidence to support this?

    • ChrisC says:

      1 Dec1 December 07:23

      https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2021/11/30/omicron-stricter-travel-rules-us-entry/?itid=hp-top-table-main

      (I posted this earlier in the chat thread)

    • Andrew says:

      1 Dec1 December 07:26

      As per discussions on the main chat page, and covered in detail here:
      https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2021/11/30/omicron-stricter-travel-rules-us-entry/

      • Gareth says:

        1 Dec1 December 07:49

        Thanks. Think either of the options suggested scuppers a holiday unless 2nd test is instant.

• Fraser says:

  1 Dec1 December 06:05

  But how can you go to a clinic to get a PCR test if you’re required to isolate until the test result arrives?!

  • FCP says:

    1 Dec1 December 06:08

    Going to get a PCR test is a permitted exception to the isolation.

  • Yuff says:

    1 Dec1 December 06:17

    You are allowed to go out for a test, that has always been the case.
    This is a cop out as anyone who has a negative pcr is in effect not infected.
    Hiding behind isolating until you have a negative day 2 test is inconveniencing more passengers deliberately where there is a solution to avoiding the isolation.
    As each day goes by the scaremongering increases whilst the stats get better each day…………
    When this is shown to be the charade most people suspect it to be it will be much harder to get people to conform to these draconian measures.
    By all means take precautions at the borders but if you get back from abroad from a country which has much lower covid cases and expect them to isolate because of omicron then when there is a real danger see how difficult it is to get us to believe them again…….

    • Jo says:

      1 Dec1 December 07:46

      Sorry that is such a pathetic comment. If it inconveniences you that much stay in the UK.

• FCP says:

  1 Dec1 December 06:11

  DP – So i arrived back in the UK yesterday, after 4am, so needed a PCR test. I had booked with Collinson Manchester Airport Drive through, on Saturday night. £55 with the Amex 20% discount.
  Had the test at 1pm, result ‘guaranteed’ by 23.59 following day, but received at 19.30 same day.
  6 1/2 hour turnaround.
  Maybe not busy, maybe busy but no at capacity, no idea, but very happy at the quick release!

  • Andrew says:

    1 Dec1 December 06:16

    That’s encouraging – I’m sure their SLA times are the worst case scenario to cover themselves, but in reality much quicker. The notion of it will put people off travelling, so capacity should be manageable.

  • Sandgrounder says:

    1 Dec1 December 06:57

    My dad had a day 2 in clinic self swab with Biograd for 19.99 at 10am, advertised as results within 48hrs, but were back late evening same day. Available near Manchester airport, Warrington and Bootle.

  • Caroline says:

    1 Dec1 December 10:41

    That’s excellent, but I see in the HfP article that a Collinson test isnt valid? I’d really like to do an airport test and feeling confused as to what I can/can’t do!

    • Rhys says:

      1 Dec1 December 10:51

      You can do the Collinson PCR tests, just not the rapid 3-hour ones.

      FCP just got lucky and had their result within 6 hours, although this certainly isn’t guaranteed.

      • JK says:

        1 Dec1 December 12:30

        Collinson used to say for the old Day 5 tests that if you do the test before 4pm then you’ll get the result same day before midnight. I’d say that’s what happened here. Do the test in the evening and you might be waiting till the next evening.

• riku says:

  1 Dec1 December 06:23

  I don’t see how this has killed business trips FROM the UK. You get a test kit before you leave, do the test when you get off the plane when you come back. Drive home via a drop box and you get the results the next day. If you’re working from home you spend one night at home isolating.

  • Mike says:

    1 Dec1 December 09:05

    +1

  • J says:

    1 Dec1 December 09:05

    If one person on the plane tests positive for Omicron, it’s likely every passenger will get a call from track and trace. Not worth the risk

  • Julian Power says:

    1 Dec1 December 09:36

    Drop boxes seem to close at 3-4pm so if you have a late flight are you really going to get it the next day?

  • abc says:

    1 Dec1 December 12:01

    Where do you get the test from to drop off, though? (Serious question, if they send it to your home and it often won’t arrive for you to take on the trip with you, unless your trip is very short.)

    • riku says:

      1 Dec1 December 13:34

      the test kits have a shelf life of six months and take 2-3 days to arrive. So unless your trip starts before 5 December you can get a kit now and use it for any business trip until May 2022. You are allowed to order a test kit before you book your plane ticket.

• Aaron C says:

  1 Dec1 December 06:25

  It’s a bit of a cop out really. The reality is a negative test is enough and any further work on the positive (eg omicron or not) can be done later with the person remaining in isolation while it is.

  This is really going to kill short breaks since it needs and extra day of leave while waiting the result.

• Roy says:

  1 Dec1 December 07:01

  I suspect that at least part of the reason why the big providers aren’t doing this is that it’s not clear how long these new roles are going to be in place.

  If it starts to become clear that the new testing requirements are here to stay for the foreseeable future, they may well find it worth their while to invest in the capacity needed to offer the premium service.

  • Nick says:

    1 Dec1 December 07:17

    Exactly! What company would make a large investment in more equipment and staff, only to find that Omicrom is largely a damp squib with regards to hospitalisation, or death levels in a few weeks time. We just won’t know until further research is done, and the only way that that can be done effectively, is when there are a large number of people who actually have the variant and have a test.

  • Rhys says:

    1 Dec1 December 09:18

    Yes, almost certainly 🙂

    It is – fundamentally – a business decision. Upend their entire supply chain (again) for a 3 week stint to provide rapid tests, or try and offer higher capacity during the three weeks and return to antigen testing after?

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