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A28 WORLD NEWS
Saturday 18 april 2020
Venezuela's go-to test for fighting virus raising questions

By CHRISTINE ARMARIO, who have the infection," De Cosío, who has worked those being tested. It's not In the two weeks since,
SCOTT SMITH and FABIOLA said a doctor at the Uni- with government health clear how many positives authorities say they have
SANCHEZ versity of the Andes medi- officials on the nation's the antibody tests have conducted more than
Associated Press cal school, speaking on strategy, said Venezuela is yielded. 250,000 tests, and Pan
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) condition of anonymity for further hampered in terms "I'm not sure I would choose American Health Organi-
— Venezuelan officials fear of reprisals. of machines and person- to do exactly what they're zation figures show all but
have taken to state TV in Physicians in and outside nel available to process doing," said Dr. Angela about 3,000 were anti-
recent weeks to crow that Venezuela say the anti- nasal swab tests, which Caliendo, a professor of body tests.
the socialist government is body test is best utilized can take hours. medicine at Brown Univer- "We are at the forefront of
conducting more corona- not as a diagnostic tool The antibody test comes sity and board member of Latin America," Vice Presi-
virus tests than any other but to help assess how from Chinese biotech the Infectious Diseases So- dent Delcy Rodríguez de-
country in Latin America. widespread the virus is in company Wondfo and ciety of America. Still, she clared. But it's an inexact
But instead of detecting a community, when to lift takes about 20 minutes to too noted Venezuela's re- comparison since the rest
more infections, as has quarantines or to identify yield a result, health work- source difficulties and said of the region relies on the
happened elsewhere potential plasma donors. ers say. "they have a lot of these genetic swab test.
when testing ramps up, Yet defenders say Venezu- Those who test positive are tests that are inexpensive Neighboring Colombia,
they are reporting fewer. ela, mired in a profound then given a nasal swab to run (and) they're get- for example, has conduct-
The odd result highlights economic and public exam to confirm, a pro- ting quite a bit of data." ed about 50,000 tests, all
that Venezuela is going health crisis that began cess that can take days Bruised by years of eco- swabs. Mexico health un-
about testing its citizens years before the pandem- because a single lab in nomic calamity and more dersecretary Hugo López-
unlike any other country: ic, has little choice but to Caracas is processing al- recently by U.S. sanctions, Gatell has expressed dis-
Mass deployment of a rely on it as a first-line test. most all of them. Those President Nicolás Maduro dain for the antibody tests,
rapid blood antibody test The nation is one of the who come back negative appealed for international saying they're about as re-
from China that checks least-prepared to con- but have numerous coro- help in March even be- liable as a coin toss. Chile
for proteins developing a front the pandemic, with navirus symptoms or were fore the country's first con- has also ruled out using
week or more after some- hospitals routinely lacking in contact with an infect- firmed case. Allies Beijing, them as a diagnostic tool.
one is infected, while using basics like running water, ed person also undergo Havana and Moscow plus "It's complementary to
on a much smaller scale gloves and masks, and the swab test. the United Nations sent what we are doing," Chil-
the gold-standard nasal thousands of physicians Only swab-test positives tests, medical gear and, in ean Health Minister Jai-
swab exam that detects having emigrated in re- are added to the country's Cuba's case, doctors. me Mañalich said. "But it
the virus from the onset. cent years. official case count, sever- One of the largest ship- doesn't work for a general
Doctors warn Venezuela's "With limited staff and fi- al physicians told AP. ments from China arrived screening of the popula-
approach could be miss- nancial resources, the Government officials, who at the end of last month tion."
ing untold numbers who country has to explore did not respond to a re- carrying a half-million anti- The Wondfo test has ap-
test negative because other options such as the quest for information on body tests. proval from an EU regu-
they do not yet have high rapid test," Dr. Gerardo the matter, have not said As of March 31, according lating agency, but some
antibody levels but could de Cosío, head of the exactly who is getting to the U.N. Office for the physicians warn that many
nonetheless have the virus Venezuela office of the tested, but doctors and Coordination of Humani- exams are being pushed
and be spreading it to oth- Pan American Health Or- TV images indicate sub- tarian Affairs, Venezuela to market without rigor-
ers. ganization and the World way workers, hospital staff had done just 1,779 swab ous testing and it's not yet
"We could be letting peo- Health Organization, told and returning fishermen tests with an 8% positive known how sensitive they
ple slip under the table The Associated Press. and migrants are among rate. are. q

Thai leader asks billionaires for help solving virus crisis

BANGKOK (AP) — Thailand's a tremendous influence
leader says he will appeal on its economy and are
directly to the country's 20 wealthy even by interna-
wealthiest people for as- tional standards, so they
sistance in overcoming the could play important roles
coronavirus crisis. in Team Thailand. The list
Prime Minister Prayuth of Thailand's 50 richest in-
Chan-ocha said in a tele- dividuals and families com-
vised address Friday that piled by Forbes magazine
the government alone puts 27 in the billion dollar
cannot solve the health bracket. Topping the list is
and economic challenges the Chearavanont family,
posed by the pandemic, which owns the CP Group,
so other sectors should join one of the world's biggest
what he called "Team Thai- conglomerates. Thailand's
land." A business council royal family controls the
advising his government country's biggest fortune,
warned this week that as but Prayuth was clearly
many as 10 million Thais calling on the business
could lose their jobs in the community. He also said he
next few months if the crisis Thai Buddhist monks wearing face masks to protect themselves from the coronavirus pass pack will reach out to small and
doesn't ease. "The first thing of water after their devotees donated it to Molilokayaram temple in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, medium-size enterprises to
I will do next week is to send April 17, 2020. Associated Press. get a better picture of their
an open letter to the 20 situation than by having in-
richest people in Thailand they are respected elders will help us and how they Prayuth said. He said the formation filtered through
to ask them to tell me, as of our society, how they will help Thailand more," country's billionaires have various agencies. q