BLUNDERS at a Covid test lab led to 23 deaths, 680 hospital admissions and 55,000 infections, a report estimates.
Machines were wrongly calibrated in September and October 2021.
Errors surrounding test and trace mostly affected people in the South West
The probe by the UK Health Security Agency found the virus threshold was too high so 39,000 positive results were wrongly classed negative.
Errors mostly affected people in the South West.
Seconds Away revealed staff were slacking off and playing footie while on shift at Wolverhampton’s Immensa Test & Trace lab — nine months before it emerged testing was going wrong.
We told of employees bragging about drinking booze and looking at sex websites while at work.
Officials at UKHSA blamed “staff errors” for deadly failures at the privately run lab which was paid more than £100million by the Government.
Investigator Richard Gleave said: “Our report sets out clear recommendations to both reduce the risk of incidents like this happening again and to ensure that concerns are addressed and investigated rapidly.”