SHA data say Saskatchewan received 409,053 test kits as of Feb. 10. Only 172,956 had been distributed and 11,979 were used
The Saskatchewan Health Authority plans to roll out rapid COVID-19 tests to every long-term care site in the province this month after critics noted the province was not taking advantage of the hundreds of thousands of test kits provided by the federal government.
SHA data shows Saskatchewan received 409,053 test kits as of the morning of Feb. 10. Only 172,956 had been distributed and 11,979 were reported to have been used.
In a statement on Tuesday, the SHA said tests will now be rolled out to “all long term care sites this month to support an ongoing testing surveillance program for residents and staff.”
Premier Scott Moe said Friday that the province had not acted fast enough to distribute rapid tests and suggested they could be more rapidly deployed in long-term care as well as jails, schools and some interested Indigenous communities.
The province has three types of rapid COVID-19 tests it’s currently using, all of which can deliver results within 15 minutes and rely on the same nasal swab to collect a sample.
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