Hepatitis B patients to get free treatment

Tribune News Service

Mohali, June 22

The government on Tuesday announced that patients would get free treatment of hepatitis B in all medical colleges, district hospitals, sub-divisional hospitals and anti-retroviral treatment (ART), oral substitution therapy (OST) centers in the state.

Launching the initiative at the District Hospital, Mohali, Health Minister Balbir Singh Sidhu said the hepatitis B viral load testing facility would be extended to 27 centres free of cost. The state Health Department had entered into a rate contract with Oncquest Laboratory under which it had provided a technician at every district hospital and government medical college. Hepatitis B samples of the patient would be taken while the cost of the test be reimbursed to the lab at the rate of Rs 851 by the government.

Sidhu said the line of treatment is long and expensive but the state government would give free medicine to the patients. Even Punjab patients under treatment in the PGI would also be provided medicine free of cost.