Corona pandemic: the quiet death of the test centers

The times when corona test centers seemed to be springing up on every street corner are over.

The small containers, in which mostly semi-skilled helpers take nose or throat swabs, are the mainstays of the system that is intended to record the infection situation in the population.

Monica Ganster

Editor in the Rhein-Main-Zeitung.

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At the beginning of April, the corona restrictions were eased significantly, and the move away from nationwide tests began: the result of an antigen rapid test did not have to be shown in restaurants, pubs or at events.

Little by little, employers also gave up nose swabs at the factory gate, and schools were the last to follow.

This ended the comprehensive recording of infections across all age groups.

Now only those who plan to visit a hospital or retirement home have to go to the test center.

The demand for the free swabs has therefore fallen noticeably in recent months, as numerous test center operators confirm.

Damage of 10,000 euros

At the same time, the anger of a few at the outposts of corona surveillance seemed to increase: Almost at the same time as the restrictions were relaxed, a whole series of suspected arson attacks began in various test centers in Hesse.

In Mörfelden-Walldorf, unknown persons set fire to two containers at the beginning of April.

In one case, the perpetrators used fire accelerants, resulting in damage of around 10,000 euros.

Since the test station was on the site of a gas station, the consequences could have been dramatic.

At the beginning of April, only charred remains of a container remained in Groß-Zimmer.

A case from Fulda was recently reported.

In all cases, the perpetrators have not yet been identified.

Overall, the number of test stations is falling - not because of the attacks, but mainly because of falling demand and the associated uncertain financial future.

The federal government has paid a lot for the test centers since March 2021.

According to the Federal Social Security Office, he is said to have spent more than ten billion euros on this by April 2022.

But when the federal coronavirus test regulation expires on June 30, the assumption of costs for the tests also ends.

A spokesman said that the Ministry of Health in Berlin is still discussing whether there will be a follow-up regulation.

For the operators of test stations, who have to plan with personnel and rental costs, this is a shaky affair, as some say behind closed doors.

This is one of the reasons why several test stations are already closing.

220 test stations closed in March

How many there are, one can only speculate.

All available corona test centers in Hesse should be listed

on the website

But the overview is only maintained by the operators themselves, as a spokesman for the Ministry of Social Affairs confirms.

Anyone who opens a test center has a valid interest in being found by potential customers on the collection page.

If a private provider closes, he would have to unsubscribe himself in the overview.

Which does not work reliably according to random samples.

In Frankfurt alone, 30 of the 220 test stations in March were closed in the following two months and reported to the health department, as a spokeswoman confirmed.

But the authority assumes that not all stations follow this deregistration rule promptly, so that there are now fewer than 190 test sites in the city.

The hit rate proves that the test centers are still important for detecting infections.

There are no statistics on this, but surveys of operators show the same picture everywhere: Compared to March, there are significantly more positive tests, up to 40 percent of all nasal swabs.

As a rule, it is those customers who come there because of their corona symptoms.

On Friday, the incidence in Hesse was given as 273.6.

In truth, it should be well above that.