The government will not dissuade the use of rapid antibody tests amid calls to stop its use to detect the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), presidential spokesman Harry Roque said on Wednesday.

“I think it should not be discouraged because it still produces results that we want which is to find out who among our population is afflicted with the disease,” he said in an interview with CNN Philippines.

Dr. Antonio Dans of the Philippine Society of General Internal Medicine had earlier blamed the use of the rapid test kits in the spread of COVID-19 in work places.

Roque said the government “never encouraged rapid tests kits as a stand alone test.”

“We always say that it should be used in conjunction with PCR (polymerase chain reaction tests) recognizing that PCRs are still the most accurate,” he said.

Roque pointed out “no test is perfect” since PCR tests can also produce “false positive” results.

“That’s why you have to compliment the use of PCR with rapid testing kits especially in a country like the Philippines where until recently we did not have enough tests,” he said.

“Even if we now have 32,000 tests per day capability, the reality is not everyone can still get them,” he said.

Roque also refuted the claims of Dr. Dans that “the use of rapid test kits is responsible for the spread of COVID-19.”

He said that last Tuesday, Aug. 4, the Department of Health (DOH) released data concerning COVID-19 cases.

“Contrary to the claim of Dr. Dans, the clusterings were in the community in jails and in hospitals,” Roque cited.

“Who is using rapid test kits now? The corporations and there are no clusters observed in the workplaces right now,” he said.  

Roque added that the DOH data showed that “rapid test kits are doing what they are supposed to do which is to operate as initial screening until individuals are able to get PCR tests.”