Covid-19: Tamil Nadu plans to cap treatment cost as death toll reaches 160

CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu moved to control pricing for Covid treatment and offer incentives for remaining in government quarantine on Saturday, which saw the state report the highest single-day rise of 938 positive cases, taking its tally to 21,184. Six people succumbed to the virus pushing the death toll to 160.
The medical expert committee recommended continuation of restrictions on public transport, places of worship and malls in Chennai, which logged 616 fresh cases.Neighbouring Chengalpet recorded 94 case, Kancheepuram 22 and Tiruvallur 28. Doctors warned that any relaxation in lockdown in Chennai may lead to increase in cases, complications and deaths. The new cases on Saturday include 82 people who travelled into the state by air, road and rail.
Health minister C Vijayabaskar said private laboratories had been told to reduce the price of Covid tests from Rs 4,500 to Rs 3,000. A formal announcement is expected on Sunday. “We told them that they would be required to do more tests in the coming months and, hence, they should not charge more than Rs 3,000. If labs are doing home tests, they can charge an additional Rs 500,” he said after a meeting with the labs. The state will hold similar talks with private hospitals over the weekend.
12,000 TN patients cured, 9,021 still under treatment
“There will be slabs based on the type of rooms and facilities at the hospital. The aim is to help people, particularly those who don’t have any medical insurance, make informed decision on place of treatment,” Vijayabaskar said. Action, including closure of establishments, will be initiated against hospitals and labs under the TN Clinical Establishments Act for violation. “There should be no profiteering during a pandemic,” he said. Earlier, at the meeting with the expert medical committee, the state said it will create a dashboard with details on the hospitals, number of beds and cost at every hospital – government and private – treating Covid -19 patients.
Chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami told the committee that the government was planning to make quarantine attractive with incentives to improve compliance. Many daily wage workers skipped testing despite being symptomatic or close contacts of Covid-19 positive patients because they did not want to skip their daily wages or face a pay cut.
Hospitals discharged 687 patients taking the total number of people cured to 12,000 and leaving 9,021 patients still under treatment. With cases increasing, the number of patients requiring oxygenation and ventilator support also rose in both government and private hospitals, experts said. While Vijayabaskar said he saw an increase in the list of people requiring oxygen support at GHs, Apollo Hospitals announced that 9 of their 37 patients were on ventilators.
The state health department has made Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital (RGGGH) a quaternary care facility, where only critically ill Covid patients would be treated. Patients with moderate symptoms will be taken to other medical care hospitals and asymptomatic elderly will be taken to peripheral hospitals.
Of the six casualties reported on Saturday, a 37-year-old woman died on May 28, a day after she was admitted to the RGGGH. A 54-year- old man admitted to Omandurar Medical Collegeal on May 28 died the next day minutes after his samples returned positive. A 58- year-old-man with diabetes and hypertension admitted on May 27 in RGGGH Hospital, died on May 29. A 69 year-old man with diabetes, hypertension and kidney disease admitted on May 27 to RGGGH, a day after a private lab confirmed his samples were positive, died on Saturday. A 70-year -old man with hypertension, diabetes and heart disease died soon after admission to RGGGH on Saturday. A 72-year-old woman with lung cancer, admitted on May 19 in RGGGH after a sample taken at a private lab confirmed she was positive, died on Friday.