The government has set the testing fee for dengue at Tk100 for government hospitals and Tk300 for private hospitals. 

Health Minister Zahid Maleque announced the rates to the media after a meeting on mental health care at the community level in the National Institute of Mental Health and Hospital on Sunday (6 November).

"We have directed government hospitals to charge Tk100 fee for NS-1 antigen tests for dengue patients. At the same time, private hospitals have been asked to charge Tk300," he said.

However, Director General of DGHS ABM Khurshid Alam on Friday said that free dengue tests have been ordered in all government hospitals of the country. 

Earlier, during the 2019 dengue outbreak, DGHS ensured free dengue tests in government hospitals and Tk500 testing fee in private hospitals.

Dengue Death toll reaches 170

Three more dengue patients died in 24 hours till Sunday morning, raising this year's death toll from the mosquito-borne disease in Bangladesh to 170.

During this period, 908  more patients were hospitalised with dengue fever as cases have continued to increase, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).

Of the new patients, 476 were admitted to different hospitals in Dhaka and 432 outside it.

A total of 3,368 dengue patients, including 2,042 in the capital, are now receiving treatment at hospitals across the country.

On 21 June, the DGHS reported the first death caused by dengue in this season.

This year, the directorate has recorded 43,103 dengue cases and 39,569 recoveries so far.

This year's dengue cases and casualties became the second highest since 2000 when the government formally started keeping records on dengue. In 2000, 5551 dengue cases and 93 deaths were registered.

However, in 2019, the highest 1,01,354 dengue cases and 179 deaths were reported.