Lateral flow tests are currently unavailable on the government website after new advice was released from the government on what double jabbed people in England should do if they’ve been in contacted with someone with COVID.
If a double-jabbed person in England has been identified as a contact if someone who has contracted Covid, they must take a daily lateral flow test for seven days, starting from the 14th December.
Muhammed, a pharmacist in Salford, said: “We’ve seen an influx of people buying lateral flow. Especially in the last week we’ve given a large number out.
“We tried to order more in advance but couldn’t get hold of any. We’ve been checking with suppliers daily, almost twice a day, to check if there is any available.
“We’ve had angry people come in. This morning, by 10am we’d had about 20 people come in for lateral flows. Most people understood but some were a bit annoyed because they need them for work and events. It’s been a busy morning sending people away as we don’t have what they need.”
One Salford resident said: “I had a few in reserve because I bought a couple of packs of them but I have noticed I can’t buy anymore and I’m running out of packs. It seems like its another twist in this whole thing, they’re just messing up at every corner.
“I feel like it’s not necessarily related to the government but they seem to be doing everything wrong at every steep and it’s getting ridiculous now.”
Image Credit: Harrison Bates
Another said, “I think its wrong but I’m ok because I work in a school and we have plenty. There should be plenty for everyone.”
One Salford resident, Panache, said he thought the government was at fault.
They said: “It says that the government has been all over the place, they are uncertain. It’s not comforting as these are the people who are meant to lead you and know your best interests before you do. You can’t trust their decisions anymore.
“I’m more worried in a sense of why is there a shortage, they’ve not predicted the high demand despite how much worse the virus has gotten.”
The lack of lateral flows will cause concern for workplaces who test multiple times a week in order to keep everyone safe. Alex works in a theatre that requires everyone to test twice a week.
He said: “I think it’s not something we should be going through with the cases rising and the new variants. People should be getting tested all the time for the safety of other people. It means our workplace would be less safe if we can’t test.”
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