There has been a lot of talk lately about the availability of cheaper coronavirus tests for residents of Croatia, given the fact that they currently come at a somewhat hefty price tag that not everyone can afford to throw away on such an item. Just when can Croatia actually expect to have access to these cheaper tests?
As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 16th of July, 2020, fter the Minister of Health, Vili Beros, announced that Croatia could get its hands on cheaper PCR tests for coronavirus at the end of this week, the director of the Croatian Institute of Public Health explained at a recent conference of the National Civil Protection Headquarters when we might realistically expect them.
“I can’t answer you in detail. The price was set in agreement with HZZO at the moment when these tests became available, it was the first [type of this] test in the majority of Europe. At that moment it was difficult to get a platform, reagents, get everything together and organise it all, we had a price on the PCR device agreed for other virus tests, and agreed on the whole hundred euros price. Later on there came other tests, the price of the reagents changed, and everyone was ready to talk to reduce that price. The price will be adopted very soon, I expect it to happen next week,” said Krunoslav Capak, adding that there will be a meeting at the Ministry of Health on Friday to discuss it further.
He added that the Croatian Institute of Public Health had already conducted a public tender for the reagents they needed.
“HZJZ spent five million kuna, it was a crisis situation, we conducted public tenders for everything we needed. I guess that’s how all institutions work. I don’t know who the suppliers are, I don’t even know about my institution in that regard. I don’t know all the suppliers, but I know that by law, we conduct public tenders,” added Capak.
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