When Malad resident Asha Kulkarni was handed out a bill of R6,400 for a COVID-19 test at a private lab, she sought an explanation for the additional amount being charged, as the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) had capped the fee at R4,500 while roping in such labs for the tests. However, the L H Hiranandani lab said that the additional charge included registration, consultation and handling fees, but the patient had only paid R5,200.

Kulkarni undergoes dialysis at a centre in Goregaon, which asked her to get the COVID-19 test done as a precautionary measure. "My mother doesn't have any symptoms. We went to L H Hiranandani Hospital on Wednesday afternoon and they gave me a receipt of R6,400 for the test. When I told them that the cost of the test should not be more than R4500, the staff said that it was the hospital charges. I couldn't argue more and paid R6,400," said Avdhut, Kulkarni's son. As per the receipt, the hospital charged R4,500 for the Coronavirus test, R200 for registration, R1,000 for consultation and R700 as handling charges. Activist Kamlakar Shenoy, who raised the issue, said, "The government should seek a justification for such charges from hospitals. Are hospitals supposed to be service-oriented or should they conduct commercial activities without social responsibility?"