22 Jul 2020

Covid-19: Community testing rates still low

From Morning Report, 8:10 am on 22 July 2020

Doctors are concerned that not enough Covid-19 tests are being done to pick up any new cases that may slip into the community.

Medical practices and testing centres were overwhelmed at the start of flu season, as tens of thousands of people a day rushed to get tested for Covid-19.

That led the government to tighten its guidelines, and roughly a thousand tests are now being conducted a day, significantly under the health official's goal of 4000 a day.

So, with Covid-19 currently caught at the border, have we become too complacent?

Dr John Bonning is the president of the Australasian College of Emergency Medicine.