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LONDON – More than 500,000 people in Britain were asked to self-isolate last week by the government-backed Covid-19 Test and Trace app, with similar figures expected in the coming weeks.
In the week ending July 7, a record 520,194 people in England were alerted by the app that they had been in close contact with someone who tested positive for the coronavirus and therefore needed to self-isolate.
A BBC analysis last week revealed that up to 4.5 million people in the UK could be asked to self-isolate by the Test and Trace system between mid-July and the policy change in the UK. August 16.
Research published in the British Medical Journal in late June looked at the interactions of 5,802 people over 14 days, finding that the average participant had 59 interactions that could be defined as close contact. The study found that for each infected person, an average of 36 close contacts could be identified and contacted, which could mean that millions of people are currently being asked to self-isolate.
Earlier this week, UK media reported that users of the Covid app were ‘pinged’ and told to self-isolate when their neighbors contracted the virus, the technology behind the Test and Trace system. application detecting “close contact” with positive cases through the walls of their homes.
Currently, anyone in the UK who is told close contact has tested positive for Covid must self-isolate at home for 10 days. Individuals can be contacted by phone, email or text message through the NHS Test and Trace system, or via a notification on the app.
‘Close contact’ is defined in the UK as spending 15 minutes or more within two meters of an infected person.
UK Health Minister Sajid Javid recently announced that from August 16 people who had been fully vaccinated against Covid would no longer be required to self-isolate if close contact tested positive for the virus. coronavirus. The policy change would also apply to children under 18.
Employee absence issues
England is expected to lift nearly all of its remaining Covid restrictions on Monday, which Prime Minister Boris Johnson said will be an “irreversible” move.
However, the country is currently experiencing an increase in new cases of the virus, which has been linked to the highly transmissible delta variant.
There were 48,553 new cases of the virus in the UK on Thursday, bringing to 5,281,098 the total number of confirmed cases in the country since the start of the pandemic.
The increase in the number of cases has raised concerns among industry executives that the contact tracing system could create employee shortages.
Karan Bilimoria, chairman of the Confederation of British Industry – which represents 190,000 companies – said in a statement Thursday that the government should propose the rule changes for self-isolation.
“Infection rates can rise quickly, but it’s clear the testing and tracing system is in need of an overhaul, with more than two-thirds of the adult population now fully bitten,” he said.
“As more companies prepare to open their doors on Monday, staff shortages are sorely felt across all industries, particularly in our struggling hospitality and leisure industries.”
Nick Allen, CEO of the British Meat Processors Association, told the BBC on Friday that some organizations could be forced to shut down production lines, with up to one in 10 meat production workers being asked to isolate by the app .
Meanwhile, it was reported on Monday that passengers flying from Terminal 5 at Heathrow Airport in London were disrupted after a number of employees were asked to self-isolate by NHS Test and Trace .
Up to 900 workers – more than one in 10 employees – at Nissan’s manufacturing plant in Sunderland, England, are currently off work after being “screwed” by the app, the BBC reported Thursday.
Removing the application
A poll by Savanta ComRes for the Guardian newspaper, published on Tuesday, found that more than one in three adults between the ages of 18 and 34 had already removed the NHS app. About one in five adults of all ages said they intended to remove it within a week, according to the survey.
Government figures and health officials have urged the British public not to remove the app.
A spokesperson for the UK Department of Health and Social Affairs told CNBC by email on Friday that the NHS Covid app had prevented around 600,000 infections and 8,000 deaths between September and December.
“The app does exactly what it was designed to do – inform close contacts of someone who tests positive for Covid-19 that they are at risk and advise them to self-isolate,” they said.
“As cases continue to increase, it is essential that people are aware of their personal risk so that they can make informed decisions about their behavior in order to protect those around them.”
Testifying in Parliament last week, Jenny Harries, chief executive of the UK Health Security Agency, said work was underway to “adjust” the app to take into account vaccination status.
“It’s important right now to remind people how important it is to keep the app running,” she said.
The NHS app, which has been downloaded over 26 million times, is not mandatory and there is no legal obligation for users to self-isolate if they are “pinged”.
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