HYDERABAD: The Telangana government on Wednesday slashed the rates for RT-PCR testing for Covid-19 in private labs from Rs 2,200 to Rs 850. For samples collected at home, the charges have been reduced from Rs 2,800 to Rs 1,200. The announcement came from the Director of Public Health, Dr G Srinivas Rao.
He further clarified that the government testing facilities for Covid-19 will continue to be free. Rapid Antigen Tests are presently being conducted across 1,076 PHCs and Community Health Centres (CHCs) across the State.
While 18 RT-PCR labs are run by the government, there are 50 in the private sector. “The price of consumables has fallen in the market. Be it the rates of the testing kits or PPE kits, both have fallen making testing much cheaper than before for labs. We wanted to shift this benefit to the people. No lab can charge more than the new announced amount and the prices are inclusive of PPE kits etc,” said Dr Srinivas. The new prices announced are one of the lowest nationally. Maharashtra also offers an economical rate of Rs 980 per test.
Meanwhile, several there were raised eyebrows about the timing of the move among netizens. Many questioned whether it was done keeping in mind the upcoming GHMC polls on December 1.