Demand for Antique Testing Surges in France

France has not had such a dramatic demand for tests that determine the presence or absence of coronavirus. Over the past week, six million people across the country stood in lines in front of specialized laboratories and pharmacies to undergo this procedure. Note that not long ago there were an order of magnitude less of them. The influx of applicants is now such that one of the leaders of the trade union of workers of biological laboratories, Henri-Pierre Doermann, sounds the alarm: “We are at the peak of our capabilities. The situation is close to a crisis.”

So what’s the deal? And the fact is that after sanitary passes (complete vaccination against covid or the presence of a certificate of a past illness) became mandatory for visiting cafes, restaurants, museums and other similar public places, hundreds of thousands of citizens found themselves in the position of “outcasts.” Some have not yet had time to get vaccinated or have received one dose so far, others are in no hurry to inject for other reasons. with vaccination. However, with a caveat – its effect is limited to 72 hours. Hence the crowds of people who want to get a temporary “til”. Moreover, two-thirds of them are antigenic rapid tests, the result of which can be obtained, as they say, without leaving the checkout, literally in 15-20 minutes.

Many do them just before the weekend to sit with friends in a bistro, go to the cinema. Others intend to visit a shopping center, where access is now strictly on sanitary passes, or go on vacation by train (they will not be allowed to the station without a corresponding QR code on their smartphone). An important detail: tests in France are still free for the population. However, in mid-October the situation will change. For the PCR test, you will have to pay 49 euros, and for the express test – 25 euros. … According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, 175 thousand people took part in them, and, as the organizers of this movement are convinced, there were at least 350 thousand participants. Frankly speaking, such a protest upsurge in France has not been seen for a long time, especially in August, when the French go on summer vacations en masse.