Czech State to Cover COVID-19 Tests Costs for Employees and Self-Employed

LATEST: The Czech government has not decided on a possible tightening of measures. The meeting will continue on Thursday from 6 pm.

From March 1, the Czech state will compensate the costs of four speed tests per employee or self-employed person per month.

According to the Minister of Industry and Trade Karel Havlíček (ANO), businesses and companies will be able to buy the tests from certified manufacturers.

Havlíček has previously said that the price of one test ranges from 60 to 150 crowns. According to Wednesday’s statement by Prime Minister Andrej Babiš (ANO), the state should contribute 60 crowns per test. Employers will be obliged to report all positively tested workers to hygiene stations.

Havlíček assumes that the monthly costs for the Czech state will be around 600 million crowns. He also estimates that testing could affect about 1.88 million people, so around 7.5 million tests could be performed every month.

According to health insurance companies, employees should be tested by general practitioners or at collection centers.

Od 1.3. kompenzujeme plošné testování ve firmách a rovněž u OSVČ. Každý zaměstnanec nebo živnostník získá příspěvek na čtyři rychlotesty/měsíc. Právě jsme schválili na vládě.

— Karel Havlíček (@KarelHavlicek_) February 24, 2021

The government asked the Chamber of Deputies to extend the current state of emergency due to expire on February 28.

“The measures connected to the draft Pandemic Law are insufficient to address the covid-19 crisis, and the government will consider tightening them,” said Babis.

From Thursday, respirators (or two surgical masks) will be required in public spaces and also outdoor spaces where people are closer than two meters.

The stricter measures have been introduced due to the diminishing capacity in intensive care units and anesthesiology and resuscitation departments (ICU and ARO) across the country. Additionally, cases of the highly contagious British mutation are increasing in the country; while it does not cause a more severe case of coronavirus, the variant spreads up to 40% faster.