Temporary screening test stations are demolished one by one... Only 'PCR inspection' is recognized and reviewed

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As daily recovery is accelerating, temporary screening centers, one of the pillars of corona testing, are closing one by one.

The government is also considering a plan to eliminate the rapid antigen test at local hospitals and clinics and leave only the PCR test if the epidemic continues to decline.

Reporter Park Soo-jin reports.

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Seoul Plaza temporary screening station.

After the last morning inspection, the operation was terminated, and demolition work began.

It was installed in December 2020, when the third corona virus was in full swing, and more than 250,000 tests have been carried out so far.

[Myung Soo-young/Seoul Jung-gu Public Health Center Screening Clinic Manager: At the peak of the day, there were about 2,700 cases, but these days, there are only about 100 cases a day on average.

And that's how I ended up here.]

It's not just here.

Since the 11th, as hospitals and clinics have been in charge of rapid antigen testing, 23 temporary screening test centers have closed their doors, reducing the demand for testing.

Eight more locations will be closed by next month.

However, 638 screening clinics nationwide continue to conduct free PCR testing for high-risk males.

As the epidemic is fading, the government is considering ways to reduce reliance on rapid antigen testing in hospitals and clinics.

As the PCR test capacity is sufficient for 800,000 cases per day, if the trend continues to decrease, it will be unified into a more accurate PCR system.

[Son Young-rae/Chief of Social Strategy Team, Central Accident Remediation Headquarters (last 20 days): (Corona) As the incidence rate gradually decreases, there is a possibility that the positive prediction rate itself will decrease.

Whether or not the rapid antigen test result will be recognized as a positive case is a situation that needs to be reviewed.]

In this case, you may not be able to receive the test at a nearby local hospital or clinic, and some point out that it conflicts with the goal of restoring the daily medical system.

The quarantine authorities said they would make a decision after examining the false positive rate and epidemic status of the rapid antigen test.

(Video coverage: Oh Young-chun, video editing: Park Ji-in, CG: Choi Jae-young)

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