CORONAVIRUS: Germany processes 500,000 Covid-19 tests a week and issues ‘immunity certificates’ so they can leave the lockdown early

COVID TESTING: Most in Madrid don't bother showing up Credit: twitter

GERMANY could issue thousands of people coronavirus ‘immunity certificates’ so they can leave the lockdown early.

  • German researchers want to send out hundreds of thousands of coronavirus-antibody tests over the coming weeks.
  • 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.

Germans could soon be issued ‘immunity certificates’ that would allow them to leave the country’s coronavirus lockdown earlier than the rest of the population if they test positive for antibodies to the virus. 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. If the project is approved, the researchers will test 100,000 people at a time starting in early April.

Merkel shines in handling of Germany’s coronavirus crisis
Merkel shines in the handling of Germany’s coronavirus crisis.

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.

The chief UK scientific officer’s argument is that “no test is better than a bad test” when it comes to the coronavirus.

“The goal should be to where Germany is, which is half a million tests a week,” said a Global public health expert.

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Tony Winterburn

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