Dorset health bosses say ‘no shortage’ of lateral flow tests
It comes days after the government website warned that home testing kits had run out
Health bosses in Dorset say there is ‘no shortage’ of lateral flow tests.
A spokesperson for Public Health Dorset says they have been told by UKHSA that there is no shortage of lateral flow test kits but online orders may be temporarily paused to manage delivery capacity.
They added: "If people are unable to get tests from a pharmacy or online, stock is refreshed every few hours online so they should check back later."
A spokesperson from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) says they are issuing 'record numbers' of rapid testing kits - with 1.6 million tests distributed on Monday (13 December).
It comes days after the government website warned that home testing kits had run out, with visitors told to ‘try again later’.
Dr Michael Marsh, a Medical Director at NHS England and NHS Improvement South West, said: "There are plenty of lateral flow tests available.
"I think the problem was with the weekend's announcement, a bit like the supermarket shelves, everybody rushed to get some and the system got overwhelmed in terms of the requests coming in quickly.
"There is also that element that people need to be responsible."
Dominic Mellon - the Deputy Director of Public Health England South West - adds that there is a risk that people are ordering more than they need:
"If people order what they need, use what they have to begin with, do make use of community pharmacies which have supplies that are coming through - that's probably the best way of being able to access lateral flow tests."
A spokesperson for UKHSA said: "We must carefully balance the demands placed on the delivery network to ensure that PCR and LFD tests can be delivered to homes across the country.
"The number of LFDs that we can send to people’s homes each day varies according to the demands on the wider delivery network.
"You can find your closest location to collect a lateral flow tests kit on gov.uk."