Minister of Health Hugo de Jonge has decided to close Schiphol’s coronavirus test street. As demand for testing increases, education and healthcare staff are given priority.
In a decision intended to free up capacity in other testing centres, Schiphol airport authorities have closed the internal test street. Minister De Jonge says it was a trial which has now been completed.
In a letter to the House of Representatives, De Jonge says the decision is based largely on “the increasing bottlenecks in the test capacity at laboratories.”
The results of the experiment will now be evaluated to determine how to best move forward with testing at airports.
In their live blog, Schiphol authorities say they hope to bring back the testing centre as soon as possible.
Prioritised testing
Minster De Jonge also announced that by the end of this week essential health care workers and educational staff will be given testing priority. GGDs will be responsible for deciding how exactly to go about it.
De Jonge emphasises that “just as I mentioned for healthcare workers, the priority regulation for teaching staff is only justified if it is not unnecessarily at the expense of the testing capacity for other people with complaints.” He adds, “this priority for care workers and teachers is a temporary measure.”
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Feature Image: Schiphol/Supplied