The government has decided to reduce the cost of rapid test for public sector workers from XCD$260 to EC$50.
The basic cost for that type of test is US$20, Cabinet spokesman, Melford Nicholas said.
“The Cabinet took the decision yesterday for the government to provide a lower cost for rapid test for those persons who have chosen not to be vaccinated but who will be required to undergo test once every 14 days”, he said on Thursday morning.
The cost was reduced so that public sector workers who choose to remain unvaccinated against covid-19 can be tested at an affordable rate.
“Many have argued, and perhaps forcefully so, that the conditions could prove to be financially onerous and even burdensome to many a person, [so] just to indicate that the government’s balance in these affairs is not necessarily put anyone at the point where they have a feeling that they are being economically oppressed”, he explained.
Persons employed within the Tourism sector and other government agencies can take advantage of the new price. Testing can be done at the local hospital or at private medical facilities.
“We’re certainly going to have to put some resources at the disposal of the laboratories”, Nicholas remarked.
The government’s policy dictates that unvaccinated public sector workers must be tested every two weeks at their own cost.
Meanwhile, the Cabinet and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) have still not met to fully discussed the implications of their policy for employees who work within the public sector.