Travellers, workers in need of COVID-19 tests hit by cancellations
Travellers and workers paying for their own COVID-19 tests in B.C. have hit a wall of delay and cancellation as pressure mounts on the system.
Kevin Chang, a Canadian citizen who was planning to travel to Japan next week to see his wife, was told on Tuesday that his private test had been cancelled. This comes as B.C.'s reported tests jumped 40 per cent in a day on Wednesday to 9,752 (it was 5,730 the day before.)
Chang said he was set to pay $300 for a doctor's note confirming he was COVID-19-negative in order to comply with Japanese government entrance guidelines. Instead, he got an email from the YVR Medical Clinic stating his appointment had been cancelled “because the lab has limited the number of tests effective immediately.”
The email went on to say: “We don't know the reason the lab cannot process any more tests and it affects any clinics offering COVID tests in B.C., not just us. This may change in the coming weeks, but we do not know if or when we can offer more testing. Please note that this sudden change is out of our control.”
Chang said he had booked the appointment three weeks ago.
The clinic is one of several in B.C. that provides a certificate of COVID status for travellers to countries that require it — like Japan. Those tests are done at LifeLabs, the Ministry of Health's sole private testing agency.
The province has tested at around half the rate of the Canadian average — 84,719 per million compared with 194,072 per million — and consistently tests less than in Alberta.
On Wednesday, a Ministry of Health spokesperson said B.C.'s testing capacity was 10,000 and averaged 6,000 a day. However, testing capacity will double in the fall to 20,000 a day. Free testing is available to anyone with COVID-19 symptoms or who has been exposed to the disease and identified by contact tracers.
The testing pressure also has impacted B.C.'s film industry, with several large productions halted — including Riverdale, Batwoman, Nancy Drew and Charmed. During a virtual news conference Wednesday, Big Sky creator David E. Kelley said “some delays in test results” had led to the temporary shutdowns.
Chang said he was still hoping to make the flight and was travelling to Saskatoon to get a doctor's note. He said this seemed to create more risk for people, if they had to fly out of province to get a note.
Chang said he will spend 14 days in quarantine, and maybe see his wife through the window. When they meet again he is hoping for a dinner at home and a night of watching a romantic comedy.
There are 1,283 active cases of COVID-19 in B.C. and 234 people have died.
Of those active cases, 72 are in hospital, including 21 in intensive care. There are 3,202 people under active public health monitoring after being potentially exposed to the disease. So far, 7,591 COVID-sick people have recovered.
As of Wednesday, in Japan, there are 6,428 active cases and 1,561 people have died.