Number of coronavirus testing sites in Tbilisi to expand

The list of sites offering coronavirus tests in Tbilisi will increase, said Head of the National Center for Disease Control (NCDC) Amiran Gamkrelidze.

Gamkrelidze said first polyclinics and dispensaries will be added to the 40 medical institutions that are currently conducting coronavirus tests, noting that then some pharmacies and dental clinics may be involved in the process of testing as well.

• Check the list of Georgian laboratories offering to make a test to diagnose COVID-19

Gamkrelidze said that currently there are about 120 outpatient clinics in Tbilisi.

At this stage, 40 outpatient clinics are involved in the process of testing, which have a contract with the NCDC to conduct tests and then pay for each test,” said Gamkrelidze.

He noted that if the number of polyclinics and dispensaries will not be enough to conduct tests, then pharmacies will be added where special areas will be set up for tests to be conducted and all the recommendations and safety requirements will be observed.

Starting December 2, the Georgian government has vowed to conduct 20,000 daily coronavirus tests around the country to reveal new infections and curb the spread of the virus in a timely fashion.

Georgia reported 5,068 new cases of coronavirus earlier today: a record-high figure since the country confirmed its first case of the virus on February 26, 2020.

Health officials said that 17,000 PCR and rapid tests were conducted yesterday. 

More than 1,250,000 tests have been made in Georgia so far.