UAE Donates COVID-19 Test Kits from BGI to Nevada, U.S. Government Warns Against Using it for Fear of Leakage of Patient Privacy
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) donated 250,000 doses of Chinese-made COVID-19 test kits to the State of Nevada. However, the officials from the U.S. Department of Foreign Affairs and Homeland Security privately warned the State of Nevada not to use this batch of test kits due to concerns over patient privacy, the accuracy of the kits, and the involvement of the Chinese government.
U.S. intelligence agencies have been warning that China and other countries may use test samples to learn about the medical history of the tester, illnesses, or genetic characteristics of the test subjects, but they have not provided evidence. According to an internal email obtained by the Associated Press under the Public Records Act, the office of the Governor of Nevada shows that the U.S. authorities are most concerned about the test kits produced by BGI Group from China, the largest gene-sequencing company in the world.
William Puff, a Homeland Security regional attachĂ© at the U.S. Embassy in Abu Dhabi, sent an email to Nevada officials, “I hope that the leadership of the Nevada COVID-19 Task Force is aware of this. As a result, they can make an informed decision and know some concerns of the U.S. government."
Source: Apple Daily #Oct16
https://hk.appledaily.com/international/20201016/SC4B532XLBAOHIITX4SQTKBVUA/
#UAE #COVID19testkits #US #Nevada #USDeptofHomelandSecurity #USDeptofForeignAffairs #BGIgroup #Chinatestkits #AbuDhabi #COVID19 #WuhanCoronavirus #WilliamPuff
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) donated 250,000 doses of Chinese-made COVID-19 test kits to the State of Nevada. However, the officials from the U.S. Department of Foreign Affairs and Homeland Security privately warned the State of Nevada not to use this batch of test kits due to concerns over patient privacy, the accuracy of the kits, and the involvement of the Chinese government.
U.S. intelligence agencies have been warning that China and other countries may use test samples to learn about the medical history of the tester, illnesses, or genetic characteristics of the test subjects, but they have not provided evidence. According to an internal email obtained by the Associated Press under the Public Records Act, the office of the Governor of Nevada shows that the U.S. authorities are most concerned about the test kits produced by BGI Group from China, the largest gene-sequencing company in the world.
William Puff, a Homeland Security regional attachĂ© at the U.S. Embassy in Abu Dhabi, sent an email to Nevada officials, “I hope that the leadership of the Nevada COVID-19 Task Force is aware of this. As a result, they can make an informed decision and know some concerns of the U.S. government."
Source: Apple Daily #Oct16
https://hk.appledaily.com/international/20201016/SC4B532XLBAOHIITX4SQTKBVUA/
#UAE #COVID19testkits #US #Nevada #USDeptofHomelandSecurity #USDeptofForeignAffairs #BGIgroup #Chinatestkits #AbuDhabi #COVID19 #WuhanCoronavirus #WilliamPuff