The Supreme Court on Wednesday suggested private labs should not charge exorbitantly for COVID-19 tests, and asked the Centre to explore a mechanism wherein the amount spend on these tests could be reimbursed. The observation from the apex court came on a petition that sought its direction to ensure free COVID-19 testing for all citizens - both in government and private labs. A bench headed by Justice Ashok Bhushan observed, amid the ongoing public health crisis due to the coronavirus pandemic, that the private laboratories should not charge heavily for such tests.

The Supreme Court on Wednesday suggested private labs should not charge exorbitantly for COVID-19 tests, and asked the Centre to explore a mechanism wherein the amount spend on these tests could be reimbursed. The observation from the apex court came on a petition that sought its direction to ensure free COVID-19 testing for all citizens - both in government and private labs. A bench headed by Justice Ashok Bhushan observed, amid the ongoing public health crisis due to the coronavirus pandemic, that the private laboratories should not charge heavily for such tests.