Motion-___________________________

Side-_______________________________

The public health infrastructure of India is in shambles consequently majority of population from the
poorest to the richest relies heavily on the private healthcare sector. The Covid-19 pandemic has bought
this bitter truth to the forefront as we witness that the Private healthcare sector rose to the occasion
and led the fight against Corona. The policy of free tests is problematic because-

1.The private health care sector is essentially a profit making entity. The private labs are predominant in
maintain the needed number of tests conducted to stay ahead of the pandemic . But they need to make
money or they will die out of failure to procure necessary materials. If they have to solely bear the costs
of free tests, many such labs will either stop testing or shut down completely, which would complicate
the fight against coronavirus.

2.Forcing the private sector to conduct free tests might end up being counterproductive. The private
labs might charge exorbitant amounts for materials needed for testing to cover their expenses of
conducting free tests instead of billing the actual process of tests thus driving people away from these
labs to get their covid-19 tests.

3.The private labs so far make up a huge chunk of tests being conducted throughout the country due to
the absence of a strong public health infrastructure. Forcing these labs to conduct free tests will lead to
them shuttering down leading to a shortfall in the tests conducted making the fight against corona more
precarious.