Bengaluru: The Karnataka Government has capped the price of Influenza Panel Tests at ₹1,700 in private laboratories for all suspected SARI (Severe Acute Respiratory Infection) and ILI (Influenza-Like Illness) cases. This decision is aimed at strengthening COVID-19 and influenza surveillance, particularly during seasonal outbreaks, and ensuring affordability for citizens.
According to a circular issued by the Department of Health and Family Welfare (Government Order No. 287 dated 24.07.2025), all government and private medical colleges, district hospitals, and healthcare institutions are directed to refer eligible cases for the Influenza Panel Test at the newly fixed rate.
Earlier, private laboratories were reportedly charging between ₹8,000 and ₹10,000 for the test, making it financially inaccessible to many. The revised rate of ₹1,700 is now applicable across the state to ensure cost-effective testing.
The Influenza Panel Test includes diagnosis of multiple respiratory viruses and plays a critical role in detecting influenza during community surveillance and monitoring. Hospitals and laboratories have been instructed to upload the data of all SARI and ILI patients on the Integrated Health Information Platform (IHIP) portal using SRF IDs for proper case tracking.
All district health officers, district surveillance officers, medical superintendents, and principals of medical colleges have been directed to strictly enforce the price cap and refer relevant cases for testing as per the surveillance protocol.
The directive is issued in continuation of earlier advisories from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (GoI) and aims to streamline public health responses to seasonal flu outbreaks.
