Covid-19 testing labs reject cheat detection responsibility

There is a fear that self-testing for Covid-19 could tempt some people to cheat the system. © Keystone / Gaetan Bally

Laboratories that process Covid-19 tests in Switzerland have criticised a proposal to have them weed out cheats.

On Wednesday, the government said that intensive testing will continue to be a crucial pillar of future pandemic strategy.

This includes plans to allow do-it-yourself saliva testing at home – provided that the threat of fraudulent tests can be mitigated. The fear is that people could cheat by sending someone else’s saliva to the laboratory.

According to Swiss public broadcaster SRFExternal link, the government wants to make laboratories responsible for checking the identities of people taking the tests. One suggestion is to make use of video monitoring.

But the Association of Medical Laboratories in Switzerland has rejected the proposal. “As laboratories do not take the samples themselves, they cannot guarantee identification,” association president Nicolas Vuilleumier told SRF.

The idea of video identification is “purely theoretical” as laboratories currently lack the technical means to carry out this task, he said.

Potential legal and ethical issues of video surveillance could force some laboratories to stop processing such tests, Vuilleumier warned.

The proposal, part of a wider package of suggested new measures, is currently in a consultation stage with cantons.