Lawmaker suggests improving NAT services

Lawmaker Lei Chan U expressed hope that the Macau government will improve nucleic acid testing (NAT) services to ensure that Covid-19 pandemic prevention needs are met.

“This pandemic outbreak has exposed the insufficiency of our existing ability to conduct NAT, especially due to the lack of nucleic acid samplers,” Lei said. He explained that due to a staff shortage for NAT services, public medical institutions were required to suspend the provision of basic medical services to redeploy skilled personnel to NAT stations. 

Lei suggested keeping several NAT stations to help prevent people from gathering and reduce the risk of virus transmission.

Further, Lei also called on the government to extend the service hours of some NAT stations to 24 hours to meet the needs of residents.

Also, the lawmaker questioned whether the introduction of the NAT service competitors will be delayed due to the pandemic. 

Back in May, the government announced that a new NAT operator may be approved to provide services in June, meaning cheaper tests may be possible.

Therefore, the lawmaker hopes that the government will expedite the introduction of new nucleic acid testing providers to reduce the cost of NAT and the consequent burden on the general public. Staff Reporter