Govt To Look Into 'inaccurate' Covid Test Results

The Food and Health Bureau says it will look into a coronavirus case involving a patient who reportedly received false negative results through community testing in the Yau Tsim Mong district before eventually testing positive in hospital.

Dilip Rai, a 42-year-old Nepalese man, told RTHK that he had received false negative results after taking tests at a Yau Ma Tei community testing centre on January 15 and at a mobile testing station on Canton Road on January 18.

With his symptoms becoming more serious, he called an ambulance and was taken to Kwong Wah Hospital on January 18, where he tested positive the next day.

Rai said his wife, son, cousin and her husband have also caught the virus, and three of them also received false negative results after going through the community testing.

In a statement, the bureau said it is concerned about the reports, and has immediately contacted the Hospital Authority and the testing service providers to obtain more information.

The bureau said it has engaged infectious diseases expert Professor Yuen Kwok-yung to help with follow-up action, and will announce more information to allay public concerns once it's available.

It said the contractors involved performed satisfactorily in the external quality assurance programme of the Department of Health, and have the paperwork needed under the Hong Kong Laboratory Accreditation Scheme.

It added that the Centre for Health Protection regularly sends specimens to all service providers of community testing centres for comparison tests to make sure their tests are up to standard.