West Bengal government on Thursday, April 30, said that as per the protocol of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), hospitals don’t need approval for testing someone for coronavirus.

The government in an advisory directed all hospitals in West Bengal not to deny services to anybody ‘for any reason whatsoever’.

The advisory was issued a day after Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee urged private hospitals to not deny healthcare services to any patient that approaches them for treatment for COVID-19. Her appeal came after some private hospitals allegedly refused to treat patients with COVID-19 symptoms.

The advisory said the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on April 28 issued a guideline ‘on the early normalisation of services in the health sector for providing non-COVID 19 essential services to patients,’ reported NDTV.

As per the advisory, the guideline is for the ready reference and necessary action of all healthcare facilities in West Bengal to make sure that every patient can avail such facilities.

‘Further it is clarified that no government approval is required for either admitting or treating any patient in any healthcare facility or for testing an individual for COVID-19 as per ICMR’s testing protocol,’ it said.

The Chief Minister has said that the state government has collaborated with as many as 51 hospitals to treat patients of coronavirus. It is also bearing all the expenses of their treatment.

‘But other hospitals also can treat coronavirus cases by taking necessary precautionary measures. I appeal to everybody to provide treatment to them,’ she had said.

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