Prognosis
Covid Testing ‘Lottery’ Needs Overhaul, Warns U.K. Watchdog
- U.K. CMA says competition alone won’t address consumer concern
- Covid testing market under fire for ‘harmful practices’
Passengers arrive at Malaga airport from London.
Photographer: Carlos Gil/Getty Images
This article is for subscribers only.
The Covid travel testing market is a “lottery” which risks becoming a “race to the bottom” that greater competition alone won’t fix, the U.K.’s antitrust watchdog warned.
The Competition and Markets Authority has been investigating firms that offer polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests for travel after concerns the market was riddled with high pricing, poor service, and failure to provide tests results on time, or in some cases, not at all.