The Federal Council wants to give a new group access to the Covid certificate: those who have recovered who have not yet been able to prove it. Anyone who can show a positive antibody test should receive an extra certificate that is only valid in Germany for 90 days and thus receive access to restaurants, cinemas and fitness centers.
So far, however, the federal government had resisted recognizing antibody tests – they were not reliable enough. “Today the antibody tests are much better,” said Health Minister Alain Berset (49) the U-turn in the Blick interview.
Antibodies can be detected for up to 14 months
Experts see it that way too. Oliver Nolte from the St. Gallen Center for Laboratory Medicine supports the idea that antibody tests should be viewed as evidence of immune protection. “Because people who were sick with Covid but cannot show a PCR test have so far fallen through the mesh,” says the microbiologist.
He refers to a study by his center: It shows that people who have a positive PCR test still have antibodies in their blood for up to 14 months after infection. “That means that they are protected to a certain extent from re-infection.”
How high this protection is and whether a certain amount of antibodies is needed to be considered immune cannot (yet) be said today. The Federal Council has partly taken precautions. Because after 90 days the antibody certificate would expire.
Tests are not comparable
Nolte nevertheless considers the implementation of the Federal Council’s proposal to be very complicated. The reason: There are very different tests that are not only different in reliability. “They also work differently and are therefore not directly comparable in terms of results.”
Put simply, the tests measure the antibodies in different ways. And where one test provides a one-digit number as evidence, it is a two-digit number for another. Nolte becomes clear: “In view of this, the only thing left is the statement: Antibodies yes or no. I do not think that issuing a certificate is sufficient. “