Gandhinagar: The state government announced on Wednesday that the RT-PCR test rate and HRCT scanning had been cut.
Private laboratories will now charge Hospital 400 instead of RS 700 to test RT-PCR.
For RT-PCR samples collected from homes or hospitals, private laboratories cannot charge more than RS 550, reduction of RS 350 from the existing level of RS 900, Deputy Minister of Nitin Patel to reporters in Gandhinagar.
In other significant discounts, RT-PCR tests carried out by private laboratories for passengers at the airport in the state will now cost Rs 2,700, reduced Rs 1,300 from the existing RS 4,000.
Further Patel said the center of the private radiology could not charge more than Rs 2,500 for high resolution scanning CT (HRCT).
This is a reduction in Rs 500 from the previous fixed cost of Rs 3,000.
HR-CT scanning is very important to ensure Covid-19 infection in patients.
The decision to reduce the RT-PCR test rate has been in demand by considering the decline in the price of kits used in this test, and as part of the state government preparation for the possibility of the third wave of pandemics, he added.
Giving numbers, Patel said that 1.66.99,857 RT-PCR test and 91.55,936 Antigen tests were quickly carried out in Gujarat.
“For those who try to get themselves tested in private laboratories, the state government has reduced tariffs on two occasions in the past.
The price of the kit used in the RT-PCR test also fell.
So the government’s core committee has decided to cut the test costs,” Patel said.
He said the Ministry of Health had launched steps to overcome the possibility of the third wave of Covid-19 pandemic.
“The first thing must be ascertained if a patient is Covid-19 positive or not is a RT-PCR test,” Patel added.