So happy tests are to be axed

[Wizzbangfizz]

So according to reports they are going to stop handing out LFT and will be stopping mass testing - this is excellent news for both the tax payer and the environment and surely marks a clear path this whole thing becoming endemic

Charging for tests in sensible and brings us into line with other European countries. Those who want to prioritise testing still can, others won’t.

Do other countries charge because their health system isn’t completely free like the NHS? Maybe people should be careful for what they wish for

@toomuchlaundry

Do other countries charge because their health system isn’t completely free like the NHS? Maybe people should be careful for what they wish for

It’s not completely free, it’s paid for through taxation

It’s free at point of use though @MrsKDB. And you have access to it even if you don’t pay taxes.

Not many countries have completely free at point of use

@toomuchlaundry

Do other countries charge because their health system isn’t completely free like the NHS? Maybe people should be careful for what they wish for

Or maybe we should pay like we do for prescriptions in England.

Do other countries charge because their health system isn’t completely free like the NHS?

No because in France health cars is covered by health insurance. Lateral flow tests are not included - they have to be paid for privately.

[quote rambleonplease]@TheSunIsStillShining assuming you are posting from the UK no vaccines are mandatory in the UK. Of note, mortality % from measles is much higher than Covid, markedly so with children. So not a good comparison tbh. [/quote]
They also mention poxes. I presume they mean smallpox, which is highly contagious and has a 30% death rate. If Covid had a death rate like that there would be bodies piling up in the streets.

Ridiculous comparisons.

It's front page on most main broadsheets/ tabloids.

I think they should be available when needed but I know lots of people who test way too much seeing as they do not make regular contact with anyone vulnerable. This is a waste of money and materials.

@doublemonkey
"Smallpox, Variola minor - Viral - Unvaccinated - 1%
Smallpox, Variola major Viral Vaccinated 3%
Smallpox, Variola major Viral Unvaccinated 30%"
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_human_disease_case_fatality_rates
I can only go by information I find. Wikipedia -on the whole- seems to be a good source in general
(not that I haven't found inaccuracies.... )

[quote TheSunIsStillShining]@doublemonkey
"Smallpox, Variola minor - Viral - Unvaccinated - 1%
Smallpox, Variola major Viral Vaccinated 3%
Smallpox, Variola major Viral Unvaccinated 30%"
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_human_disease_case_fatality_rates
I can only go by information I find. Wikipedia -on the whole- seems to be a good source in general
(not that I haven't found inaccuracies.... )[/quote]
Thanks for clarifying, I misunderstood.

It isn't personal joy and as I've already said it marks a move towards stepping away from this collective madness and hysteria. Any small step is to be applauded in my view. We are in a hugely different place from where we were and thank god for the Tory backbenchers preventing further restrictions.

And as for the testing advice - there is quite a lot of health advice people don't follow - not to drink too much/smoke/eat processed meat. I'll assess my own risk and act accordingly.

Free at the point of use healthcare has caused huge societal problems; over testing / wasting tests / stockpiling tests are a case in point. A different model of healthcare is long overdue.

All the lft tells me is whether I have covid or not

No they don't. They tell you if you've been exposed to the virus Sars Cov 2. Not everyone exposed to the virus will go on to develop covid. You cannot spread covid as its a collection of symptoms that only some people will develop after exposure.
Those testing positive with no symptoms do not 'have covid'.

collective madness and hysteria

If someone thinks the worldwide response has been 'collective madness and hysteria', there is little point engaging.

@Wizzbangfizz

It isn't personal joy and as I've already said it marks a move towards stepping away from this collective madness and hysteria. Any small step is to be applauded in my view. We are in a hugely different place from where we were and thank god for the Tory backbenchers preventing further restrictions.

And as for the testing advice - there is quite a lot of health advice people don't follow - not to drink too much/smoke/eat processed meat. I'll assess my own risk and act accordingly.

We haven’t done twice weekly tests. I’m ok with making that call too.

I think things will change pretty markedly once the peak is over.

Lots of teetotal, non smoking vegans can still catch Covid OP , yes healthy choices help you suffer less symptoms but they won't stop you from contracting the virus or any other transmissible illness.

@Katieandthekids

It's front page on most main broadsheets/ tabloids.

I think they should be available when needed but I know lots of people who test way too much seeing as they do not make regular contact with anyone vulnerable. This is a waste of money and materials.

They have contact with vulnerable people in shops, waiting rooms, buses, trains, etc don’t they?

@Wizzbangfizz

Children in secondary and are tested at start of each term, i test them if they have symptoms but will do no more than that. And guidance isn't mandated 🤷‍♀️

This is what most people do with children.

Most people around me are testing when they need to.

Scrapping free LFTs is just an excuse for the private sector to make more money out of this.

You can’t stop covid from infecting people and requiring hospital treatment by ignoring the fact that it is there.

That’s the bit that people miss. Talking about covid doesn’t generate the virus and make it spread. Testing for covid does not generate the virus and make it spread.

Stopping these things won’t make it “endemic”.

The best way to “live” with covid is to have a decent, publicly funded health care system which enables everyone to be treated.

We don’t have that, because people apply false logic and we keep ending up in a mess.

@Wizzbangfizz

It isn't personal joy and as I've already said it marks a move towards stepping away from this collective madness and hysteria. Any small step is to be applauded in my view. We are in a hugely different place from where we were and thank god for the Tory backbenchers preventing further restrictions.

And as for the testing advice - there is quite a lot of health advice people don't follow - not to drink too much/smoke/eat processed meat. I'll assess my own risk and act accordingly.

Drinking, smoking and eating rubbish isn’t contagious.

The best way to “live” with covid is to have a decent, publicly funded health care system which enables everyone to be treated. We don’t have that, because people apply false logic and we keep ending up in a mess.

You're wrong. The NHS isn't fit for purpose because of years of under-funding from this and previous governments.

You're wrong. The NHS isn't fit for purpose because of years of under-funding from this and previous governments

How am I wrong? It’s been under funded because people apply false logic. Those people are the previous and current governments.

Sorry, I was assuming by 'the people' you meant us the public, not them.

@LilyPond2

Not sure why everyone is so delighted at the abandonment of free testing. Even with testing we currently have a situation where hospitals are so short staffed that the government has had to call in the army to help, and people are being told to take heart attack and stroke patients to hospital in their own cars because there aren't ambulances available. If there hadn't been tests available, the Omicron variant would have spread even more rapidly through the population.

One of the main reasons the hospitals aren't coping this year (and tbh hospitals have been struggling during winter for the last decade) is staff absences due to testing positive, whether symptomatic or not.

Also, they still test asymptomatic patients coming in for something else entirely. When will that stop? A friend (consultant - knows Covid figures for the trust she works in) says more than 1/3 of those tested on admission (i.e. admitted for all mannor of issues) are asymptomatic.

Testing needs to stop but the Gov (and this is a trend in some other countries too) is that they are hoping to slowly wean us off these crutches before going back to more of a normal way of living with infectious diseases and Covid.

Well a new client of mine who I was due to meet tomorrow has tested positive this afternoon. She sent me a photo - very strong positive. Without testing how would either of us have known?

@ilovesooty

Well a new client of mine who I was due to meet tomorrow has tested positive this afternoon. She sent me a photo - very strong positive. Without testing how would either of us have known?

wait 10 mins and you will hear:

• why would you want to know, it is just a minor illness? You wouldn't know if they had noro or flu.
• you could still meet that person f2f if they are asymptomatic
• etc....