SC suggests free Covid-19 testing for people in private labs

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.