Mandatory PCR tests for BOI workers face affordability and practicality issues

• Pvt Sector enterprises concerned over high cost and capacity in accredited Pvt hospitals
• Health Ministry latest directive to BOI enterprises means 50,000 tests per week factoring total 1 m workers
• At current market prices (minimum Rs. 6,500 per test) weekly testing of 50,000 workers will cost Rs. 325 m says SJB MP Marikkar in P’ment
• Pvt Sector cites actual cost of Rs. 825 per PCR kit as per last Health Ministry tender 
• Says willing to pay slightly higher figures to fast track testing but insists Govt. base hospitals must be empowered to do tests, since private sector labs have capacity constraints
• Apparel industry to raise matter at meetings of Task Forces on COVID-19 and Economic Revival today

By Charumini de Silva

The Health Ministry directive on mandatory PCR tests for all workers in Board of Investments (BOI)-approved enterprises with immediate effect in four accredited private sector hospitals as part of fight against COVID-19 has stirred widespread concerns over exorbitant cost and practicality issues.

BOI-approved firms said, that at current market prices carrying out mandatory PCR tests will be expensive but more importantly, capacity to do such tests in the labs in accredited private sector hospitals was a bigger concern. 

On Wednesday, the Health Ministry directed the BOI to instruct all approved enterprises to start testing 5% of employees per week. This was following the spread of COVID-19 cases among over 1,000 workers at apparel giant Brandix Ltd’s factory at Minuwangoda, Divulapitiya. The four accredited private sector hospitals are Asiri, Durdans, Lanka Hospitals and Nawaloka.

Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) MP S.M. Marikkar whilst welcoming the Health Ministry directive as commendable, raised concerns over its practicality and affordability without state support in Parliament yesterday. 

He told Parliament that there are about 1 million workers in BOI-approved enterprises and 5% per week amounts to testing 50,000 employees.  “At current market prices at private sector labs, the exercise will involve a minimum cost of Rs. 325 million per week. The other issue was whether the private sector hospitals have the required PCR kits to carry out testing immediately,” Marikkar told Parliament. 

He warned that unless these issues are resolved urgently, the private sector-led export industry will face serious issues apart from the country prolonging the risk of inadequate PCR testing for COVID-19.

Analysts put the cost of doing a PCR test in private sector labs at between Rs. 6,500 and Rs. 12,500. 

“This cost is unbearable for most of the apparel companies, particularly to those engaged in the SME sector, who are barely managing to keep the business up and running owing to the impact of the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic,” Joint Apparel Association Forum (JAAF) Secretary General Tuli Cooray told the Daily FT yesterday. 

JAAF is to bring the matter up today during a scheduled meeting of the Presidential Taskforce to combat COVID-19 chaired by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa as well as Economic Revival Taskforce led by Basil Rajapaksa.  

Private sector sources said that as per the recent Health Ministry tender for PCR test kit, the successful bid’s price was Rs. 825 per kit. Though that price was for the Government, analysts said there was a big mark-up enjoyed by the private sector hospitals too.

As an immediate solution, BOI firms said that private sector is willing to finance the mandatory PCR testing of workers, provided the Government can procure the test kits at the same price as the last tender or slightly higher and make it available at State base hospitals (as well as four private sector hospitals) and BOI enterprises will do the tests even at a slightly higher price. 

The option of base hospitals resolves the issue of BOI enterprises, scattered in various parts of the country having to transport their staff to the four accredited private sector labs based in Colombo.

Yesterday, BOI Director General Sanajaya Mohotala wrote to all approved enterprises detailing the procedure to follow on mandatory PCR tests following the Health Ministry directive. He also said that BOI will be obtaining «corporate rates» for PCT tests from reputed healthcare service providers and will communicate the same to the enterprises.