The next phase of Large Scale Testing (LST) has the Bionext laboratories in Leudelange worried about their future.
As announced by the government last week, LST testing will soon be possible without an invitation, allowing people to simply make an appointment. These tests, however, will be done exclusively by another private provider, Laboratoires Réunis.
The idea is to assist those who have not yet been vaccinated. A great idea in principle, says Jean-Luc Dourson from Bionext, but he criticizes the implementation.
If tests are available for free, then no one will get tested at other private labs anymore. So far, Bionext have been charging less than 60 euros for a PCR test. The government’s plans could cause them to lose up to 80% of their revenue after investing heavily in equipment and personnel over the past year. This would put the company in dire financial straits and put jobs at risk.
For Dourson, Laboratoires Réunis have an unfair advantage at the taxpayer’s expense. After all, these tests aren’t really free, but covered by the government, which means ultimately the taxpayer. And all this benefits a single private company.
This is why he has written an open letter to the minister for health Paulette Lenert, asking that free testing should be possible in all the country’s labs.
The CSV has also sent an urgent parliamentary question to the minister, asking why people can’t simply get tested at a laboratory of their choice.
