Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) on Monday released a new advisory on ‘purposive testing strategy for COVID-19 in India’. Government’s top medical body said in a new advisory that unless identified as high-risk, contacts of COVID-19 patients do not need to be tested.
ICMR listed five sets of people who need not be tested for COVID-19:
1. Asymptomatic individuals in community settings.
2. Contacts of confirmed cases of COVID-19 unless identified as high risk based on age or co-morbidities.
3. Patients who stand discharged as per home isolation guidelines.
4. Patients being discharged from a COVID-19 facility as per revised discharge policy.
5. Individuals undertaking inter-state domestic travel.
In the wake of rising Omicron cases, the ICMR said that the genome sequencing is done for surveillance purposes and is not required to be undertaken for treatment purposes. “Therefore, genome sequencing is to be performed as per recommendations of INSACOG (Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomic Surveillance Consortium,” an official ICMR statement said on Monday.