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Skåne to offer mass testing for coronavirus antibodies

The Local Sweden
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Skåne to offer mass testing for coronavirus antibodies
An antibody test is a blood test that detects a protein in your blood to find out if you've previously had the coronavirus. Photo: Emma-Sofia Olsson/SvD/TT

The southern Swedish region of Skåne will soon be ready to offer antibody testing for the coronavirus to most of the adult population.

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In Sweden, healthcare is run at a regional level, and access to antibody tests -- which can show if you have had the infection -- varies depending on where you live in the country. In early July, Stockholm rolled out the tests for free to everyone, while Uppsala and Örebro offered them for a 200-kronor fee, and some other regions offered them to healthcare staff or other key workers.

Private companies have also offered antibody tests for a fee in several regions including Skåne.

But now the region is ready to start mass testing of the whole population, SVT Nyheter Skåne reports.

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The first tests were carried out as a pilot project at the start of this week, and the region has contracted six private care companies to carry out the tests.

Antibody tests will be available to all adults who are registered in Skåne and have been symptom-free for 14 days beforehand.

The tests will cost 200 kronor, and will not be included in the so-called high-cost ceiling (högkostnadsskydd). That means that even if you've already reached your annual cap on healthcare spending, you'll still have to pay for the antibody test.

Only people with BankID (a way of identifying yourself through a mobile app through a Swedish bank account) will be able to book a test online. However, if you don't have BankID or a Swedish personal number you can contact your local health care clinic (vårdcentral) directly and book a test that way.

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