Author: Martin Robinson, chief reporter at Mailonline
Published: December 14, 2021 04:08 EDT | Updated: December 14, 2021 10:08 EDT
The NHS website shows that there are no PCR tests available in England today. The test came back this afternoon, but it is still in short supply
Boris Johnson’s testing system broke down today, there is no free NHS PCR test available anywhere in England, and the sidestream test is still out of stock online the next day anyone runs it in the UK.
The government's Plan B relies on rapid and regular testing to avoid mandatory quarantine-critics worry that this crisis may lead to more restrictions, even a blockade after Christmas.
The new chaos occurred on the last day that Britons could test positive for the coronavirus and were quarantined on Christmas Day.
This morning, the government’s website showed that none of the testing centers in England provided PCR reports for any patients (including NHS staff) suspected of COVID-19.
According to the British National Health Service (NHS) website, about 90 minutes later, more appointments appeared, but due to the main pressure of Omicron becoming the capital, London still has a key point of “rarely available”.
Hertfordshire, Suffolk, Isle of Wight, Bristol and Mendip are still "not available" and Stockton-on-Tees is "rarely".
Experts say that when Boris Johnson predicted a "surge" in cases within a few days, the shortage of testing is not a "good sign", which puts greater pressure on the UK's testing system.
A source from the British Health and Safety Agency told the BBC that the shortage was “due to unusually high demand”. Although there are signs that PCR testing is difficult to find, Downing Street insists that the testing capabilities are strong. A spokesperson said: "It is possible to book PCR tests, but high demand may result in a temporary decrease in availability in some areas. More appointments are available for booking every afternoon.
“Testing plays an indispensable role in ensuring people’s safety and controlling the virus. We are very grateful to everyone who has been tested to protect themselves, their loved ones, and the community. Everyone who has symptoms or is instructed to undergo PCR testing should continue Come forward and send the test to their home or test point."
The Prime Minister’s official spokesperson said: “As far as PCR availability is concerned, I don’t have the latest information, but I expect to provide more booking possibilities later, and of course, there are also face-to-face opportunities.”
Millions of Britons have been told to use daily lateral flow tests to slow the spread of Omicron. Starting today, they are still unable to get them online the next day, and Amazon has now stepped in to rescue Royal Mail before Christmas.
Danny Thorpe, the Labour Party leader of the Greenwich Council, is located in one of the highest Omicron districts in the country. He wrote on Twitter: “Residents are having problems getting #LateralFlowTest. It seems that today There is no #PCR test available? @sajidjavid-what the hell is going on? This really needs to be sorted today'.
NHS staff working in hospitals, mental health institutions, nursing homes and general practitioner clinics also said that they could not be tested — preventing them from working — because they were also told to use the same website as the public.
As millions of people fight for the test, it also appeared today:
There are no more home sidestream tests available in the UK, there will be any supply before 7 o’clock this morning, when the government told millions of people to use it once a day
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People, including former Liberal Democrat MP Steve Webb, expressed concern about the lack of available tests
Contacts identified as Covid-19 patients in England were told to undergo a rapid test daily for 7 days from today. People who have not been vaccinated must self-quarantine for ten days.
The NHS website crashed again because a record number of people were eager to book boosters in the hope of saving their Christmas.
Boris Johnson promised to provide every adult with a third injection before the end of the year, which triggered a surge in demand and made parts of the UK's medical infrastructure unable to cope. Some vaccination centers lined up for five hours.
On the eve of the launch of the new testing system, the government was also forced to temporarily stop the online provision of horizontal mobile kits for home use. Starting today, all contacts of people who have tested positive for Covid must undergo a week-long daily rapid test to prevent further spread of the virus.
Over the weekend, the number of booster bookings on the NHS website hit a record high, snapping up 749,000 places. As of 9 o'clock yesterday morning, another 110,000 slots were booked.
The problem with the site started on Sunday afternoon. The Prime Minister’s subsequent televised speech led to a further surge, and many people who tried to make a reservation received a message telling them that they had been queued. Others were unable to do this, but were told that the site had "technical difficulties." No10 said yesterday that "more capacity" will be built into the service in the next few days to cope with increasing demand.
But as the rules began to be implemented, people who logged in to get a pack of seven tests were told that "there are no quick horizontal flow tests available for ordering for home delivery today" until 7 o'clock in the morning.
The British were urged to go to pharmacies to pick them up in person, but many of them have also been sold out. However, the availability of PCR home test kits does not seem to be a problem.
As a key part of the government’s coronavirus prevention plan failed the next day, Deputy Prime Minister Dominique Raab insisted that the problem with the horizontal flow of orders from the government website was not due to a lack of testing.
He told the BBC Breakfast: "The problem is not the supply and quantity, the problem is the distribution and distribution, or delivery.
'We know that yesterday there were some challenges in terms of online systems, partly because of the percentage they have every day.
"We are making sure that no matter how people want to order and purchase them, we will not only increase production capacity... but also increase distribution and delivery capabilities."
After the order on the government website was temporarily suspended due to strong demand, a new delivery arrangement was reached for the rapid coronavirus test, and Amazon was introduced
Health Minister Sajid Javid insisted that such tests are not lacking and said the problem is delivery.
He told members of parliament that he had negotiated new arrangements with Amazon and other companies to solve this problem.
On Monday, the day before the introduction of the new regulations, the regulations require fully vaccinated contacts of positive cases in England to undergo a week of daily lateral flow testing. Kits can be ordered from the government website, and people are advised to “try again later” or change Make an appointment for a coronavirus testing site.
The UK Health and Safety Agency (UKHSA) stated that the suspension is temporary and the availability is updated daily, encouraging people to revisit the site starting Tuesday.
Mr. Javid told the House of Commons: “I can assure the House of Representatives that the UK has enough horizontal mobility tests to help us through the next few weeks.
"If someone finds that they can't buy a kit online, they should check the website the next day or go to a local pharmacy to pick up a kit."
He said that the restrictions on ordering tests were related to delivery capabilities and was informed of new arrangements to solve these problems.
Mr. Javid said, "There is no shortage of actual tests", adding that "there are tens of millions" available.
He said the "limiting factor" is the ability to provide testing, calling the current arrangement with Royal Mail "not enough."
He added: "I have reached new arrangements with Amazon and other delivery methods."
He said that a record number of tests will be conducted every day, and the number of "access points" is increasing, including more tests through pharmacies.
Earlier, Boris Johnson was asked about potential supply issues during a visit to a vaccination clinic near Paddington in West London and told the broadcaster that there was "off-the-shelf supply."
A UKHSA spokesperson said: “Everyone who needs a horizontal mobility test can collect test kits at local pharmacies, some community sites, and some schools and colleges.
"Due to unusually high demand, the horizontal flow test for orders on gov.uk has been temporarily suspended to fulfill existing orders."
After more than 4.4 million attempts to book booster injections on the NHS website, booster activity in the UK fell into chaos yesterday.
Amanda Pritcahrd, chief executive of NHS England, said that as of 8 o'clock last night, after the booking system collapsed, Britons flocked in to get boosters, resulting in 545,000 appointments.
General practitioners complained today that after ordering enough doses for all patients in less than 24 hours, their walk-in clinics had run out of inventory. They are required to place an order before 9 am.
Thousands of Britons once again stood in line outside the stabbing center for five hours yesterday.
Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab admitted that after opening the drive to all British adults, the launch of the booster had "dental problems". He said it would take "a few days" to increase deliveries.
British scientists estimate that there may be as many as 200,000 Omicron cases every day. Sajid Javid warned in the House of Commons yesterday that the total number of Covids could be 200,000, but later clarified that he was referring to super mutants.
NHS leaders warned last night that Boris Johnson’s December 31 “booster or depression” deadline was preparing for the “failure” of medical services.
On Sunday night, the Prime Minister promised to provide booster injections to all eligible adults in the UK by the end of the year and began to inject more than 1 million times a day.
But even at the peak of the NHS vaccine campaign in March, the health service never managed to vaccinate more than 850,000 people every day.
Yesterday, 397,532 boosters were reported, and now the rolling average is 425,869, which is about half of the record daily total of 844,285 in March. This means that 18 million people in England have not yet made the third jab.
A senior NHS source broke the queue last night and warned that it would be difficult to reach the goal of 1 million jabs per day even before Christmas, let alone reach it in mid-December.
Health Minister Sajid Javid warned that some elective care — such as hip replacements — may be delayed due to resources being used for adjuvant treatment. However, he promised that cancer patients will not be affected.
Mr. Johnson said that the demand seen shows that "people are doing wise things and testing them."
The routine testing method replaces the requirement to isolate a double spur who is identified as having contact with someone in Omicron.
The new rules will also be debated and voted in the House of Commons this week, regarding the NHS Covid Pass becoming a mandatory requirement to enter clubs and other large gatherings-but home testing is negative as an alternative to not being vaccinated.
The deputy leader of the Labor Party, Angela Rayner, accused the government of “inability to properly procure and plan for civil emergencies” as “reckless”.
She wrote on Twitter: "Boris Johnson has put his priorities in the wrong place."
Paul Taylor, a 37-year-old pharmacy technician from Leeds, told PA News Agency that he was “frightened” by the prospect of not being able to order any horizontal flow tests.
'(I) only recently started socializing normally (going to the gym, participating in large-scale events). Doing LFTs on a regular basis alleviated the anxiety I felt during the pandemic that it might pass on anything.
“I’m scared because if I don’t get tested, I have only two options: go out and risk spreading the virus to other people, or stay home and re-block myself.”
Jessica Keogh, a 32-year-old administrative assistant from London, told PA that she ran out of horizontal flow tests and could not order more.
She said: "Actually, I am worried that I will not get anything before Christmas, and I am worried about whether I can visit my family."
There does not seem to be any problem with the availability of PCR home test kits.
The NHS jab booking site also collapsed, as a record number of people rushed to book boosters in hopes of saving their Christmas.
Boris Johnson promised to provide every adult with a third injection before the end of the year, which triggered a surge in demand and made parts of the UK's medical infrastructure unable to cope. Some vaccination centers lined up for five hours.
On the eve of the launch of the new testing system, the government was also forced to temporarily stop the online provision of horizontal mobile kits for home use. Starting today, all contacts of people who have tested positive for Covid must undergo a week-long daily rapid test to prevent further spread of the virus.
Over the weekend, the number of booster bookings on the NHS website hit a record high, snapping up 749,000 places. As of 9 o'clock yesterday morning, another 110,000 slots were booked.
The problem with the site started on Sunday afternoon. The Prime Minister’s subsequent televised speech led to a further surge, and many people who tried to make a reservation received a message telling them that they had been queued. Others were unable to do this, but were told that the site had "technical difficulties." No10 said yesterday that "more capacity" will be built into the service in the next few days to cope with increasing demand.
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