Practo on Saturday announced that COVID-19 tests are now available on its platform. In a statement, Bengaluru-based Practo said the company has partnered with Thyrocare to conduct the detection tests, which has been authorised by the government of India and the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).

"Starting today, the test is available for Mumbai residents, and will soon be expanded to the rest of the country. A valid doctor's prescription, duly filled Test Requisition Form signed by the physician, and a photo ID card has to be presented at the time of testing," it said on its blog.

The test will be available at a cost of Rs. 4,500 and can be booked online at https://www.practo.com/covid-test and https://covid.thyrocare.com/, Practo said. "Certified phlebotomists from I2H will collect the samples from the patients'' homes directly, it said. "They will be taking all necessary precautions mentioned in the ICMR guidelines while taking the swabs. The Swab that is taken during the test will be collected in a viral transport medium (VTM) and will be transported in a cold chain to the Thyrocare laboratory which has been selected for COVID-19 testing. The report will be made available to the patients on the Practo website within 24-48 hours of the sample collection," the statement added.

Dr. Alexander Kuruvilla, Chief Health Strategy Officer, Practo, said, “Widespread testing is critical to track the scale and prevent the transmission of COVID-19. To ensure that anyone who experiences the symptoms of the infection can get tested, the government is constantly working on expanding the list of labs and centers. We've partnered with Thyrocare to ensure that access to these tests is not an issue. We will continue to work closely with the authorities to identify more such areas where Practo can solve for accessibility – be it for doctor consultations, testing or medicine delivery. We stand firmly committed to our vision of making quality healthcare accessible to all Indians, esp. in difficult times such as these.”

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