(Image source from: clickorlando.com)

Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on Tuesday took the decision of conducting COVID-19 tests at laboratories in view of increase in the number of private laboratories in the city.

People from the Mumbai city can now avail the COVID-19 testing facilities without the need of a doctor’s prescription. This move will make it easier for the symptomatic patients to get tested immediately without consulting a doctor first.

BMC has also informed that if any one test positive for COVID-19 and is admitted into a hospital for treatment, he/she will not be discharged unless they test negative for the coronavirus.

Municipal Commisioner Iqbal Singh has taken the decision of allowing testing without medical prescription in the wake of increase in capacity and the number of private laboratories.

This decision by BMC will enable the patients to get quicker treatment for the virus.

Earlier, a doctor’s prescription was needed to register for a test in the laboratory.

The BMC statement also read that if someone reads positive for the coronavirus, a hospital bed will be allocated through ward level war rooms of the municipal corporation.

The charges for the testing have been fixed by the government and private labs would charge the same rates fixed by the government.

When the COVID-19 test is done at the private laboratory, the charge would be Rs. 2500 per head whereas if the test is conducted at home, the charge would be Rs. 2800.

In the wake of increase in COVID-19 positive cases day by day in the city, the Union Government has given permission for 17 new laboratories to conduct COVID-19 tests.

According to BMC calculations, a total of 3,63,120 tests have conducted so far in the city.

Meanwhile, the number of coronavirus cases in Mumbai stands at 86,132 as on Tuesday with a death count of 4,999 as per BMC.

Mumbai has recently added 806 new coronavirus cases in a day which is the biggest jump in two months.

Mumbai will be the first city in the country to allow testing without any prescription for which guardian Minister of Mumbai, Aditya Thackeray has expressed his relief saying this decision by BMC would make the citizens of the city feel safer.

By Gayatri Yellayi