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Odisha reduces rates for Covid-19 tests in private labs
Odisha will begin a serological survey on Saturday to gauge the spread of Covid-19 infection . The exercise will begin in Puri.
The Odisha government on Thursday slashed the rates of tests for Covid-19 at private laboratories from ₹4,500 to ₹2,200 a day before opposition Congress and other parties are to stage demonstrations over reduced testing for coronavirus.
State health secretary Pradipta Mohapatra said four government-authorised private laboratories in the state will now charge ₹2,200 instead of the present cost of ₹4,500 for Covid-19 tests. The labs are at KIMS, SUM, Apollo Hospital and KIIT-TBI in Bhubaneswar.
Covid-19 tests in government labs, most of which are attached with hospitals are free.
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“We expect the number of tests to go up after reduction in the price. People who can afford the cost can now visit any of these labs and get tested,” said Mohapatra.
On Friday, the Congress and 13 other parties are scheduled to stage a demonstration in Bhubaneswar over declining Covid tests in the state.
“In April, chief minister Naveen Patnaik had announced that 15,000 samples will be tested every day but the number of tests being done does not cross 4,000 per day,” alleged PCC chief Niranjan Patnaik. He also alleged that all migrants returning to the state are not being tested before they are sent to their homes.
The ruling BJD has rubbished the opposition’s charge. Government chief whip Pramila Mallick said that when the country is limping back to normalcy and witnessing a “steep growth in Covid-19 recovery rate, Congress and Left parties are trying to mislead people by creating panic.”
Health and family welfare department officials said a serological survey to gauge the spread of infection will begin in Puri on Saturday with people undergoing rapid antibody tests. The rapid antibody test will be conducted in Ganjam, Gajapati districts, Bhubaneswar and Badamba-Narsinghpur area in Cuttack district from the first week of July. At least 50,000 test kits are being brought for the serological survey.
On Thursday, the Odisha government also framed a new set of guidelines for infection prevention and control in private hospitals and nursing homes following a spurt in the number of Covid-19 cases among hospital workers.
At least 33 healthcare workers in three hospitals of Bhubaneswar and Cuttack have tested positive for Covid-19 since Monday.
Health secretary Mohapatra said private hospitals in the state will bear the cost of the treatment of their workers if they get infected in course of duty. “The promoter and/or the management of private hospitals also owe responsibility for implementation of the infection prevention and control measures,” he said.
All private hospitals have to ensure completion of training of its staff within seven days and submit a certificate to the authorities concerned.
The Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation has already issued notice to nine private hospitals in the city for flouting the protocols. Blue Wheel Hospital in Bhubaneswar, where 27 patients and staff tested positive for Covid-19, was sealed on Wednesday.
