Two hospitals in Makó and Hódmezővásárhely were found to charge HUF 96,000 (EUR 280) for coronavirus PCR tests, which is more than triple the amount suggested by the guidance of the National Public Health Center. The two private health providers failed to explain the reasons behind their pricing.
ATV News found that two private institutions have been charging HUF 96,000 for coronavirus tests, even though the guideline of the National Public Health Center suggested that the tests should cost HUF 30,000 throughout the country. Although the guideline is not legally binding, most institutions charge around HUF 30,000 for the PCR tests, which makes the hospitals in Makó and Hódmezővásárhely the clear outliers.
Currently, coronavirus tests can be conducted at about 100 institutions in Hungary. The tests are necessary for those wishing to leave the country and travel to countries labelled ‘yellow’ or ‘red’ due to the rate of active infections there.
Differences in pricing have been allowed to exist between institutions: for instance, some places charge extra for fast-track procedures with results arriving on the same day. However, the pricing of the Makó and Hódmezővásárhely institutions remains the extreme.
Featured photo by György Varga/MTI.
