KATHMANDU: The government has decided to decrease the fee for polymerase chain reaction test by Rs 2,400. “From now on, a PCR test will be conducted for Rs 2,000 instead of Rs 4,400,” said Jageshwor Gautam, the spokesperson for the health ministry. Moreover, the Health Emergency Operation Centre (HEOC) has issued a directive to all the laboratories conducting the polymerase chain reaction (PCR ) test to charge Rs 2,000 per test as per the decision taken by the ICS meetings held on Sunday in presence of Minister for Health and Population, Bhanubhakta Dhakal. On August 31, the government had slashed the fee for PCR tests to Rs 4,400 from Rs 5,500. A version of this article appears in e-paper on September 14, 2020, of The Himalayan Times.