Covid-19 tests have become part of life in the new normal and their high cost at private facilities makes them a burden for middle-income families in the country.
A family of five needs Tk15,000 to all get RT-PCR tests at the current rate of Tk3,000 each at private laboratories and hospitals. Government hospitals and labs have been charging only Tk100 RT-PCR Covid tests.
The tests were even more expensive at private labs at the outset of the pandemic, with the government lowering the price from Tk3,500 to the current rate at the end of 2020. However, the tests remain more expensive than in other countries in the region.
Experts said it was high time to again slash the price of the tests, so that people were encouraged to get tested whenever they showed the slightest of symptoms. Early detection of Covid cases is a crucial part of preventing another wave of infections.
According to the Nepal-based newspaper the Himalayan Times, the Nepal government recently lowered the cost of Covid tests from Rs1,000 (about Tk710) at government and Rs2,000 (Tk1,425) at private facilities to Rs800 (Tk570) and Rs1,500 (Tk1,070), respectively. Those who are showing symptoms can get tested at government facilities free of cost.
Sri Lankan newspapers say RT-PCR tests at private hospitals in the country cost Rs5,000 (about Tk2,125). Private hospitals in Pakistan charge PKR6,500 (Tk3,170) per RT-PCR test.
In Bhutan, the government provides free RT-PCR tests for its citizens, but those who wish to travel outside the country must pay NU3,000 (Tk3,458) for testing.
India charges Rs500-1,000 (Tk570-1,140) for RT-PCR tests, and the central government has not fixed a specific price, according to news reports.
On April 29, 2020, the Bangladesh government allowed three private hospitals to test samples of suspected Covid patients using RT-PCR and fixed Tk3,500 as the fee of each test, as the price of the kit was nearly 3,000. The price was Tk4,500 in the case of sample collection from home.
On December 27, 2020, the government lowered the rate of the RT-PCR Covid test at private labs to Tk3,000 from Tk3,500. The labs were also asked to charge Tk3,700 instead of Tk4,500 for sample collection from home.
The test fee for migrant workers was revised to Tk2,500 from Tk3,000 on May 11, 2021.
Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research (IEDCR) advisor Mushtaq Hussain told Dhaka Tribune that test kit and machine prices had gone down worldwide, so the government should slash the price of testing to make it more accessible and ease the pressure on government hospitals.
“I am not sure why the price has not been slashed again yet,” he told the correspondent.
He declined to specify what the new price should be.
When contacted, Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) Director (MIS) Dr Mizanur Rahman told Dhaka Tribune he had not yet received any order to change prices for Covid tests at private labs. He did not comment further.
Nanda Lal, representative of Popular Diagnostic Centre, told Dhaka Tribune that the diagnostic centre charged Tk3,000 for standard RT-PCR Covid tests, Tk2,500 for travellers, and Tk700 for rapid antigen tests.
“We charge whatever price is set by the government,” he added.
