Covid-19: Bihar govt caps rates for HRCT scan in private laboratories

The Bihar government on Saturday capped the price for High-Resolution Computed Tomography Scan conducted by the private laboratories in the state.

The Bihar government on Saturday capped the price for High-Resolution Computed Tomography (HRCT) Scan conducted by the private laboratories in the state.

The State Health Ministry underscored that strict action will follow against the violators under the Bihar Epidemic Diseases COVID-19 Regulations, 2021.

HRCT test serves to assess the extent of viral infection in lungs and damage to tissues to decide further treatment line.

According to the order issued by the state Health Ministry, for single-slice CT machine the private laboratories can charge Rs 2,500 while Rs 3,000 for multi-slice CT machines.

"The above charges include GST, cost of PPE kits and sanitizers," the order said.

The Bihar government had earlier fixed the rates of both AC and non-AC ambulances in the state.

As per the order from the state Health and Transport department, not more than Rs 1,500 can be charged for a small non-AC vehicle upto 50km (including both sides), and for bigger vehicles with AC, it is Rs 2,500 maximum.

As per official data, there are 1,15,067 active cases of COVID-19 in Bihar while the cumulative COVID cases stand at 4,49,063.