MPs propose to make Covid-19 tests free of charge

The State Duma has received a proposal for mass free testing of Russians for coronavirus.  It is assumed that tests should be carried out not only in medical institutions, but also in airports and shopping centers.

According to Izvestia, the initiative was taken by the ‘Just Russia’ party, which send the document to the Deputy Prime Minister and Head of the Anti-Covid Headquarters Tatyana Golikova.  The proposal is known to be supported by the healthcare committee.  The document notes that the current measures to combat the coronavirus will not be able to protect the Russian Federation from the penetration of new strains.  Examples include China, Israel and Japan, which, even with low incidence rates, apply strict measures and close borders.

The authors of the idea believe that vaccination is not enough - testing and quarantine are necessary.

Regular tests for covid are expected to help detect and interrupt the chain of infections on time.  The tests themselves must be affordable or free.

According to the authors of the proposal, Russia has the ability to organize free testing en masse. The MPs emphasize that no matter how much the tests cost, it will still be cheaper than treating patients with severe forms of Covid-19 .

So far, free testing outside medical institutions has been organized only in Moscow - there are 70 offices where you can take an express test without an appointment and with a passport.  Mass free testing is practiced in Japan and China, deputies remind of the decrease in the incidence in these countries.

Opponents of the initiative believe that mass testing paralyzes the work of medical laboratories, and therefore it should be done only on indications.

At the same time, laboratories are not required for express testing; you can even check for covid at home.  However, Russian Federal State Agency for Health and Consumer Rights does not consider the results of rapid tests to be completely reliable, so far they cannot replace PCR tests.