Demand rises for Covid-19 tests, stretching resources

An increase in demand for diagnostic tests for Covid-19 has created problems for the National Blood Center, which said on Wednesday that it was temporarily suspending testing as it has run out of reagents. The center conducts around 1,000 of some 13,000 daily tests nationwide.

Deputy Health Minister Vassilis Kontozamanis attributed the shortage of reagents to the “mass return” of vacationing health workers – who must be tested before they can return to work – and said tests will resume at the center on September 8.

Meanwhile the upward trend in infections continued. A total of 233 new infections were reported, bringing the nationwide total to 10,757, while two more deaths brought the toll to 273.