The Tribune

MEASURES to combat the rise in COVID-19 cases are clicking into place – but they seem a bit mixed up.

First of all, the move to postpone the reopening of schools is the right one. With cases surging, putting youngsters back into a class environment – many not having been able to get the vaccine because they are under 12 – would be an invitation to let the virus spread further.

It’s not an easy decision to make, not least of all for the parents who now have to figure out how to juggle their own jobs and their children’s education from home.

The current administration has also said how much children’s education has been harmed by virtual learning – and there will have been no appetite to continue that situation if it wasn’t essential for public health. So we applaud the bravery to make that choice, and to make it now rather than on the eve of the first school day.

But elsewhere there are mixed signs. Take, for example, the tests being used to check for the virus.

For international travel, The Bahamas now requires travellers to take the PCR test as it gives greater accuracy.

For the proposed free testing programme, the rapid antigen test is being offered, despite infectious disease expert Dr Nikkiah Forbes confirming: “Yes, there is early information that the rapid antigen tests may be less likely and accurate to pick up COVID-19 cases from the Omicron strain.”

She urged people who have symptoms who get a negative rapid antigen test to get a follow-up PCR test to be sure. That, however, is a test that won’t be part of the free programme – and people may simply not have the money to pay for the more expensive test.

To beat the spread of the pandemic, the government needs to have the most accurate information possible – and if people are not getting tested because they can’t afford it, they remain invisible to those trying to track the virus.

These are the challenges facing the government in this latest round of the fight against the pandemic. Free testing was the big card being played by the PLP on the campaign trail – but it can’t be a token effort. It has to be widespread and thorough.

People can spread this virus while not having any symptoms – free testing could help alert people if they are positive so they can take precautions and isolate. That is good, and worthwhile – but it has to be the right kind of test.

The response of the government is developing – so let’s see how this test programme rolls out. One thing for sure, this wave of the pandemic is in this administration’s hands rather than its predecessor.

It’s also in our own hands - and we have to keep playing our part in the fight.

For all our sakes, we hope for success.