Cost of RT-PCR in UAE reduced to Dh65

The cost of conducting a COVID-19 RT-PCR test has been reduced to Dh65 in Abu Dhabi, the Department of Health – Abu Dhabi said.

Till date, the cost of doing a nasal swab test was Dh85 in the Capital.

“The cost of Covid-19 (PCR) test is revised to be Dh65 for a single run, including collection and testing of the sample,” the health authority said.

PCR tests are conducted at several public and private clinics and hospitals in the Capital. Also, there are many drive-through screening centres spread across Abu Dhabi.

The new rate follows the latest directives from the local authorities for a mandatory PCR test mandatory to be done every 14 days for unvaccinated employees in five sectors including hotels, restaurants, transportation, and health, as well as social and personal activities such as laundries, beauty salons, and hairdressers.

Additionally, non-vaccinated employees of government entities in Abu Dhabi need to take a test every week to enter their workplaces. And a fully vaccinated employee is required to take a PCR test every month. The employees will bear the cost for the tests, whether weekly or monthly.

With a nationwide vaccination programme and equally aggressive testing norms, the number of new infected persons in the UAE has dropped in the past few weeks.

On Wednesday, the total number of doses administered in the country reached 7,603,328 at a distribution rate of 76.88 doses per 100 people.

The Ministry of Health and Prevention in a statement said it plans to provide the vaccine to all members of society and efforts to reach acquired immunity resulting from the vaccination, which will help reduce the number of cases and control the virus.

Meanwhile, 226,275 tests have been conducted using state-of-the-art medical testing equipment and 2,196 new cases reported.

The ministry stressed that it aims to continue expanding the scope of testing nationwide to facilitate the early detection of coronavirus cases and carry out the necessary treatment.