All the tests done at public laboratories for patients referred to these by the health system, either the person is medically insured or not, are free of charge, being covered with funds from the mandatory health insurance system, Minister of Health Viorica Dumbrăveanu was quoted by IPN as saying in a news conference.

“We already said that there are clear criteria as to the circumstances in which the persons are tested. As to the private labs, the persons who want go to these and there were also cases when employers asked to test employees at such labs and covered the related costs,” stated the minister.

National Public Health Agency director Nicolae Furtună said that four of the ten labs that now do tests for COVID-19 are private.

As to the revision of the testing tactic, Nicolae Furtună noted that massive testing is nothing else but wasted tests and overloaded labs. “You see how things stand in Georgia. Georgia strictly obeys the definition of case and the system is not besieged by asymptomatic cases. We do not have something like this in Moldova. As regards tests and testing, I, as an epidemiologist, consider everything was done right,” he stated.