A Hove branch of Boots is urging people not to come into the store as they don’t have the coronavirus antibody tests which Public Health England suggested could be available within days yesterday.
Professor Sharon Peacock, direction of PHE’s National Infection Service told MPs yesterday 3.5 million antibody testing kits could be available within days.
The finger prick tests, which are now being tested for accuracy, would allow people to find out if they had already had the virus and so had immunity to it.
But later yesterday, the UK’s chief medical officer Chris Witty said the kits needed to be property tested and would not be available next week.
He also said they would first be made available to frontline NHS workers and then rolled out in a systematic way.
Meanwhile, customers have already been turning up at Boots in George Street, Hove – potentially putting themselves and others at greater risk of spreading the virus.
Manager Sean Denyer posted on a local Facebook group: “Please be aware that the recent news articles regarding home testing kits are not true.
“Please can I urge as many people as possible to share this.
“Coming to our store and pharmacy could potentially be dangerous.”
