Cost cut: Health Minister makes an Important Announcement on Cost of COVID-19 Testing in Private Hospitals!

The Tamil Nadu government had previously announced that it was planning on capping the price that is charged for coronavirus testing in the state. After the state announces the cost for testing, the private hospitals will be forced to comply.

Health Minister Vijayabaskar announced that private hospitals must not charge over Rs.3000 for coronavirus testing. “We told them that they would be required to do more tests in the coming months and, hence, they should not charge more than Rs.3000. If labs are doing home tests, they can charge an additional Rs.500,” he said.

He also added that those with CM’s Comprehensive Health Insurance Scheme can get the testing at Rs.2,500 which will be paid by the government.

Currently there are around 43 Government facilities for testing and 29 private labs for testing. Put together the state has 71 labs where the general public can get tested for the novel coronavirus. The state is also increasing the number of beds available for treating positive and suspected patients.

Although this price limit was accepted by the private hospitals, the official announcement is expected to be made in the coming days.