Health Minister Sajid Javid (pictured yesterday by No10) changed the rules of Covid
Workers with Covid symptoms will not need to take the test from Friday as Britain tries to return to normal after the pandemic.
Anyone feeling unwell with symptoms such as a high temperature and cough will be advised to stay home.
The guidance, issued by Health Minister Sajid Javid, is part of the Government’s plan to treat Covid like other respiratory illnesses.
People with symptoms and those who test positive are encouraged to wear masks, avoid close contact with vulnerable people, and move through crowded areas if they must leave their homes.
But hospitals and care home patients and staff can still request a free Covid test, as can those at risk of serious illness. Others have to pay.
Most people who visit care homes, hospitals and prisons will no longer have to take the test.
And free parking for NHS staff, introduced during the pandemic, is ending tomorrow.
Mr Javid said: ‘Thanks to our Covid response plan, we are leading the way in learning how to live with the virus.
‘We’ve made tremendous progress but will remain capable of responding to future threats, including potential variants.
‘Vaccines are still our best defense and we are now making spring boosters available to the elderly, care home residents and the most vulnerable.’
Although coronavirus infections have increased in recent weeks, more than 55% of hospital patients who tested positive did not have Covid as their primary diagnosis.
The Check and Tracing Program will cost taxpayers more than £15.7 billion in 2021-22.
The guidelines, which took effect on April 1, recommend that people with symptoms of a respiratory infection and high temperature, or who feel unwell, stay at home and avoid contact with others until when they feel better and their temperature returns to normal.
Anyone who tests positive for Covid will be advised to try to stay home and avoid contact with others for five days when they are most contagious.
Children and young adults who are unwell with high temperatures should stay home and avoid contact with others if possible.
They can return to school, college, or child care when they no longer have a high temperature and are well enough.
Free symptom testing will be made available to patients in hospitals, where PCR testing is needed to care for them and provide access to treatment, as well as support clinical surveillance for new variants.
The trial will also be done for people who are eligible for community Covid treatments because they are at higher risk of becoming seriously ill.
This team will be contacted directly and sent lateral flow tests to keep at home if they have symptoms and instructions on how to reschedule the tests.
People who live or work in high-risk settings including care homes, hospices and prisons will get free testing.
And everyone will be screened before discharge into care homes, nursing homes, shelters and shelters.
‘Vaccines remain our best defense’
UK lateral flow shortfall causes sales to double for a week in High St pharmacies as Britons scramble to get their hands on free tests before they’re scrapped on Friday… so how much WILL the chains sell them for?
The scramble for the last remaining free supply of Britain’s lateral flow tests has seen sales of the devices rapidly increase fivefold in a week at High Street pharmacies.
LloydsPharmacy already sells Covid tests, though free ones are available on the Government website until Friday.
But many Britons have complained about not being able to buy any kits through the official ordering channel over the past two weeks.
The struggles over access to devices – which form a key part of the UK’s strategy to fight Covid – have allowed major retailers to cash in.
LloydsPharmacy told MailOnline sales for the week ended March 28 were up 400% from the previous seven days.
It also announced that it is slashing the price of lateral flow, reducing the price of a pack of 5 20p quick swabs to £9.29 – or £1.86 each – making it the cheapest on the market. .
A single test sold separately from the company will cost £1.89, compared with rival Superdrug’s £1.99 and £2 at Boots.
Meanwhile Boots is selling its 5 packs for £9.80 and Superdrug is offering them for £9.79.
High street blocks have cropped up since February 23, just days after Boris Johnson announced mass public residential streams would be phased out on April 1.
Rapid tests will be distributed to patients and staff in hospital and home care as part of the final phase of No10’s Covid living strategy.
Experts have repeatedly described the move to end free testing for those who no longer qualify for them as ‘disturbing’ amid a rise in cases.
Lateral flow tests will be distributed to the elderly and vulnerable as part of the final phase of No10’s Living with Covid strategy – leading to fears that people have hoarded supplies Rest of the swabs are free in the meantime. Users were unable to order tests on the Government website today
Street pharmacists today continue their price wars before the free party checks are scrapped from next week. Image shows: Different pricing options at Boots, Superdrug and LloydsPharmacy
LloydsPharmacy has slashed the price for a pack of five quick tests to £9.29 – each costing £1.86. At the end of February they cost £9.49 for the pack
Before moving, a A spokesperson for LloydsPharmacy told MailOnline that the company will offer a slight discount for party flow compared to previous plans.
They said: ‘From 1 April in line with the latest Government changes, lateral flow tests are no longer free across the UK.
‘LloydsPharmacy will continue to help keep the community safe and we now offer lateral flow test kits in a selection to suit the needs of our customers.
‘This includes single tests for just £1.89 or up to a pack of 5 for just £9.29 – £1.86 per test – now available in store and online at LloydsPharmacy.com.
‘You can find more information about our testing coverage on our website and coronavirus updates on the coronavirus page on the Government website.’
Boots has been offering its tests since late last month, and Superdrug is now also selling its tests online.
When the wave of Omicron collapsed in February, Boris Johnson announced that free testing would be phased out from April.
The wide announcement was seen as a way to appease Tory supporters, who at the time were threatening to send a letter of no confidence to the Prime Minister in the wake of the Partygate scandal.
But in recent weeks, the UK has seen a resurgence of Covid infections and hospitalizations, due to the even more infectious BA.2 variant, prompting many experts to call for more Free test stay.
SAGE has previously warned ending the scheme, which costs up to £2billion a month, would leave the country in the dark before a new wave and said the poor would be hit hardest.
Experts say pushing with the move could put some of society’s most vulnerable people at risk.
Professor Denis Kinane, immunologist and founding scientist at Cignpost Diagnostics, said: ‘I am concerned that the decision to end free tests from 1 April may leave certain groups of people vulnerable. at risk, especially those who are immunosuppressed.
‘This is worrying given the recent spike in cases and hospitalizations.’
Covid cases have been on the rise since the beginning of the month, after all restrictions were eased on Freedom Day on February 24.
Hospitalizations are also on the rise, up 16% in a week to 2,380 on Tuesday, the latest daily data available for.
This is the highest daily total since the peak of the Omicron wave in January, with 2,386 recorded on January 10.
Those trying to take the tests said they had difficulty accessing them for weeks as the Government began distributing the kits before the cut-off date amid fears people would hoard them.
Professor Kinane added: ‘Recent stories of shortages of lateral flow tests suggest that a large number of people still want tests to reassure themselves or protect their families.
In addition, testing plays an important role in preventing transmission for people working in environments where they come into contact with large numbers of people.
‘Many industries will wonder if this will prevent many from safely returning to the workplace as we begin to live with the virus.’
Source: | This article originally belonged to Dailymail.co.uk
