B.C. sitting on millions of rapid COVID-19 tests say BC Greens

VICTORIA (NEWS 1130) – A member of the BC Greens is accusing the NDP government of sitting on millions of COVID-19 rapid test kits, with no plan to use them.

Saanich North and The Islands MLA Adam Olsen claims public health has allocated 13 per cent of its 2.7 million tests kits, but has only used 24,000, or roughly one per cent.

He says the tests can be an important diagnostic tool, especially now during this third wave of the pandemic.

“It’s not the be all and end all we know that when someone an asymptomatic person tests positive using one of these rapid tests that they then need to go and get tested, to confirm that positive result. However, it’s the data that we collect and how we use that data that’s really important, of course, more information is better,” Olsen said in a video posted to his Twitter. “And if we can identify asymptomatic cases, similar to what was found in the UK where they’ve identified 120,000 asymptomatic cases using these rapid tests, then this is going to help in our response to the COVID-19 pandemic.”

Today I asked @adriandix why gov’t is sitting on 2.7 million rapid #COVID19 tests – using only 1%. At a time when variants are spreading like wildfire we could be using these tests to detect asymptomatic infections, like the UK where they caught 120k cases. 1/ #bcpoli #COVID19BC pic.twitter.com/jiLXgbzKtC

— Adam Olsen (@AdamPOlsen) April 27, 2021

Health Minister Adrian Dix says B.C. is using more rapid tests in B.C. and presented its rapid test policy on March 4, but the tests used in the UK are not licenced in Canada right now.

“The gold standard test, the PCR test, the one that we’ve used millions of in B.C. — that continues to guide policy, while rapid testing, in many circumstances, can help support that gold standard testing,” he said in Question Period on Monday.

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• BC Green Party calls for more aggressive COVID-19 measures
• Rapid COVID-19 testing at YVR contributes to safer travel: study

Rapid tests can provide results within 30 minutes and have been used by some companies including remote worksites to test workers. A rapid testing study at Vancouver’s airport saw nearly 600 British Columbians voluntarily tested over a four-month period between November and February. None tested positive, and the study suggests many felt it made them more confident about the safety of their trip.

BC Green Leader Sonia Furstenau has previously called for more aggressive measures to tackle the spread of COVID-19, including expanding testing to asymptomatic individuals and conducting rapid testing in workplaces, schools, businesses, and neighbourhoods.

With files from John Ackermann