Keep Your Home Safe and Build a Protected Community Against Omicron with Circle HealthPod

With an increasing number of confirmed cases in Hong Kong, S.A.R., China since the initial transmission on 27th December 2021, the recent Omicron outbreak is of utmost concern in the community. WHO has classified Omicron as a Variant of Concern (VOC) due to having mutations known to display increased transmissibility, illness severity, or decreased effectiveness in diagnostics, vaccines, therapeutics, and public health measures such as social distancing.  Currently, Omicron's severity compared to other variants is unclear, adding fear and uncertainty to Hong Kong, S.A.R., China's community. In such sense, a way to re-build a trusted and protected community is of urgent importance.

Prenetics Limited, a global leader in diagnostics and genetic testing, provides a solution to keep homes safe and allows families to bring health home with Circle HealthPod. The CE-IVD marked Circle HealthPod provides portable, lab-quality testing to the global community. Developed by the University of Oxford, the Circle HealthPod is one of the world's most advanced home detection systems.

The Circle HealthPod COVID-19 test is a PCR-quality molecular nucleic acid amplification test (NAAT) that detects the RNA of SARS-CoV-2. Several key features are listed below:

• A pocket-sized lab that provides 98.4% molecular accuracy and detects >99.9% of known COVID-19 strains, including the Omicron variant

• A HealthPod which is designed to be used more than 1000 times and in the future with single-use capsules to detect other infectious diseases such as Flu and STDs

• A pain-free short nasal swab with PCR-quality results in approximately 20 minutes

• Results displayed on the device or on the individual's Circle HealthPod app. Results are 100% private and secure, can also be digitally shared with anyone to verify negative results

• Circle HealthPod is undergoing clinical and validation studies in the United States with the aim of an EUA submission to the FDA in Q1 2022

Circle HealthPod signifies a collective response and commitment to the increased need for rapid testing in the community to bring a better new normal. Circle HealthPod was recently launched at Hong Kong, S.A.R., China International Airport for pre-departure COVID-19 testing to 13 countries globally, addressing the need from a growing number of countries for scalable, PCR quality, rapid testing solutions.

Danny Yeung, Co-Founder and Group CEO of Prenetics, said:

"Prenetics is driven to empower the community to fight COVID-19 together. With Omicron continuing to spread quickly, testing, especially home-testing, will be essential to containing the pandemic. How quickly and easily people can learn their COVID-19 status will determine how well we can control the spread of the virus. With this cup-sized portable at-home testing device, millions of people will be able to test anytime and anywhere. We hope that with Circle HealthPod, we can foster a trusted and protected community, allowing everyone to re-connect with their loved ones."

• The Circle HealthPod is available online at circlepod.co and Watsons via various sets:

• The Circle HealthPod trial Set, which consists of the HealthPod and one free COVID-19 capsule, at HK$990.

• The Circle HealthPod Starter Set, inclusive of the trial set + 5 capsules at HK$2,190.

• The Single-Use COVID-19 Capsule Set at HK$240.

Consumers can order Circle HealthPods, taking the initiative to keep themselves, their families, and the community safe from the Omicron variant.

About Prenetics

Founded in 2014, Prenetics is a major global diagnostics and genetic testing company with the mission to bring health closer to millions of people globally and decentralize healthcare by making the three pillars — Prevention, Diagnostics and Personalized Care — comprehensive and accessible to anyone, at anytime and anywhere. Prenetics is led by visionary entrepreneur, Danny Yeung, with a team of over 800 employees and operations across 9 locations, including United Kingdom, Hong Kong, S.A.R., China, India, South Africa, and Southeast Asia. Prenetics develops consumer genetic testing and early colorectal cancer screening; provides COVID-19 testing, rapid point of care and at-home diagnostic testing and medical genetic testing. To learn more about Prenetics, visit http://www.prenetics.com/.

Source: Prenetics