According to Professor Denis Kinane (Cignpost ExpressTest chief medical officer), lateral flow tests are not as reliable as they should be.Covid-19 has impacted the most tourism and travel industries.Recent Abta analyses found that 195,000 people, out of 526,000, had lost their jobs or were at the edge of redundancy.Over half of the small businesses in this sector said they could not continue trading for three more months. Millions of people have been prevented from traveling, not only for business or holidays but also to visit their families abroad.This is the grim picture, so it's not surprising that the UK's traffic light system, which codes countries according to their Covid-19 risk, is under investigation.Although people are aware that certain countries on the high-risk red list need special measures, they don't accept the amber restrictions.Anybody who travels to a country that is on the amber watch list must pass up to four Covid-19 screenings and be quarantined for up to 10 day upon their return.Millions of people cannot travel abroad for business, holiday or family reasons.The government may allow fully-vaccinated Britons from Amber List countries to travel without restriction.This suggestion was met with some suspicion as it appears to favor a particular group. But what about the people who are unable to get vaccinated because of medical reasons? What role do children play in this?Importantly, vaccines don't provide 100% protection against new strains of viruses that are more contagious or capable of evading vaccine-induced antibodies.It is evident that the current system requires a complete overhaul.Travellers who wish to return to the UK must pass a pre-departure exam. This can include a lateral flow or a blood test.The cost of lateral flow devices is significantly lower than those of gold standard PCR counterparts. They are therefore the preferred test choice for most travellers.They are affordable for a reason. It has been proven that lateral flow tests can miss half of the Covid-19-positive carriers. This means that someone who has a negative result could still be infected.Additionally, a test that is not performed by someone who has been trained in how to swab will not be as thorough.Since the pandemic, significant numbers of travelers who arrived in the UK with negative lateral flow tests have been detected and have since tested positive for PCR.The high degree of error in the lateral flow tests is a significant factor that forces returning travellers to undergo two additional PCR tests upon their return and to be quarantined for ten days.There is an alternative, however. One that doesn't require the damaging red and amber lists. This could allow people to go on summer vacations again.Anyone returning to the UK should have a pre-departure test for PCR.It would also significantly lower the likelihood of new variants being introduced into the UK.It could also remove the requirement that an amber list be maintained for a second PCR testing on day eight, and the need to quarantine after day three.This regime could encourage the government's move of more countries from red-to-amber or amber/green, and all the benefits that this would bring.This would lower the financial impact of amberlist regime and encourage more people travel.The accuracy and reliability must be increased if lateral flow tests are to continue being used. It will be of limited utility unless accuracy levels are much higher.We are also exploring new technologies that could eliminate the variability in these tests.We are also working on a way to connect a lateral flow device with a smart-phone so that we can ensure that the person taking this test intends to travel.Both for the travel industry's financial health and those who wish to travel for business, family, or holiday reasons, it is important to save money.It could be saved by a better testing program.
