All care home residents and staff where there are reported cases will now be tested for covid-19, the First Minister announced today, saying she expects overall testing capacity to reach 12,000 tests a day by the middle this month.

Nicola Sturgeon says Scotland has exceeded its target to have capacity established for 3,500 tests to be carried out per day by the end of April.

Combining NHS capacity with UK acquired capacity – including facilities being used at the University of Glasgow’s Queen Elizabeth hospital campus – the total daily capacity for testing in Scotland now sits at 8,350.

The First Minister said she expects this to reach 10,500 by this time next week and 12,000 by the middle of May.

Flanked by Health Secretary Jeane Freeman and Interim Chief Medical Officer Dr Gregor Smith, the First Minister said testing of staff and residents in care homes where there were reported cases, whether or not they have symptoms, would begin next week. Such homes make up over 40% of the total number in Scotland.

Sample testing in care homes with no reported cases is also promised in the coming days.

It follows a commitment made last month by government to test all those aged over 70 who have been hospitalised for any reason.

Chief executive of the newly established NHS Louisa Jordan hospital in Glasgow, Jill Young, will lead the team tasked with delivering expanded testing.

The UK’s online test booking system is also being expanded to Scotland and all those over the age of 65 with symptoms, and those in their household, are now eligible to attend drive through testing centres.

In addition to key workers, the small number of people still required to leave their house to go to work in Scotland will now be eligible for testing.

A public awareness raising campaign is to begin in the next few days to encourage those who are eligible to get tested.

The announcement comes the day after Prime Minister Boris Johnson – during his first covid-19 briefing in several weeks after contracting the virus himself – said Britain has made it through the peak of the virus.

Details about the Scottish Government’s longer term approach to testing – what is known as the test, trace & isolate strategy – which the First Minister said ‘will play a part in helping us emerge gradually from lockdown’, are expected next week.

On Wednesday it was reported deaths from coronavirus in care homes had started to outstrip deaths that took place in Scotland’s hospitals.

The same day, representative body Scottish Care – which represents hundreds of independent and charity care providers – called for an urgent strategy to support care homes, including an expansion of testing for residents and staff.

While 110 individuals remain in intensive care in hospitals across the country with confirmed or suspected covid-19, the First Minister reported that since the 5^th March 2,659 patients admitted to hospital and tested positive for the virus had been able to leave.

In the last 24 hours however, another 40 deaths have been registered of patients who tested positive, taking the total number of deaths under that measurement to 1,515.

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