November 16, 2024

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Checkup Medical, Meditest suspended for issuing fake Covid-19 PCR results to travelers

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Two accredited COVID-19 testing labs have been suspended for issuing fake Covid-19 PCR test results to travellers.

An investigation by the Ministry of Health revealed that a majority of doctored Covid-19 results came from the two laboratories which are; Checkup Medical and Meditest.

The two including other private companies that have been handling PCR tests at airports have now been banned from doing so.

In a move to restore the country’s image internationally, the Ministry of Health now says COVID-19 testing and issuance of certificates to those wishing to travel will be done by government facilities.

Fake Covid-19 test results was listed as the main reason why the United Arab Emirates (UAE) banned all inbound and transit passengers from Kenya indefinitely.

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“Customers will not be accepted for travel on Emirates flights at Nairobi during this time,” read an excerpt from the Authority’s statement.

According to preliminary investigations, some Ministry of Health officials and private labs colluded with travelers to issue fake Covid-19 results to aid travel to Dubai.

Dubai Civil Aviation Authority (DCAA) reportedly took the action due to the large number of passengers from Kenya with negative Covid-19 certificates but testing positive in the Gulf state.

The situation went out of hand the moment health officials in the Middle East nation detected up to 73 cases of Covid-19 negative tests that were fake.

In a retaliation move, Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA) yesterday suspended all inbound and transit passenger flights from the United Arabs Emirates (UAE) for seven days.

The report comes at a time the country has recorded a sharp increase in cases of Covid-19 infections in recent months, while the number of admissions in health facilities is also increasing.

Positivity rate the proportion of positive tests climbed sharply by a double-digit from last month, raising concerns among health officials.