BGI reduces testing capacity after SMS gaffe

The testing firm, BGI, said on Tuesday it’s offering fewer Covid-19 tests for now after another yet blunder, this time involving wrong SMS messages sent to people who were tested.

The hiccup involved 14 people who gave saliva samples at a public clinic in Yuen Chau Kok in Sha Tin last Thursday. The company mixed up their phone numbers, sending the test results to the wrong recipients.

None of them tested positive for coronavirus.

BGI, or Beijing Genomics Institute, said the problem didn’t involve privacy issues. It said it was assessing its work flow and has told the government that it would conduct fewer tests until the review is complete.

Both the firm and the government apologised to those affected by the latest error.

The government said it has issued another warning letter to BGI, which was involved in a number of other incidents such as generating 28 false-positive cases.

Last month, the administration suspended the firm’s mobile test services, but critics said the company’s other laboratories should also be put on hold.