Private vaccination centres to charge Rs 150 service fee for precaution Covid dose

Private Covid vaccination centres can only charge up to Rs 150 as service fee for the precaution dose over and above the cost of the jab, the Union Health Ministry said in a statement on Saturday.

Under the chairmanship of Rajesh Bhushan, Secretary of Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), an orientation meeting of health secretaries of states and union territories was held on Saturday morning over the precaution dose which will be available for all adults above 18 years from Sunday onwards.

The Secretary clarified that the healthcare workers, frontline workers and citizens aged 60 or above, will continue receiving the precaution dose at any centre, including free of cost at government inoculation centers.

He also said that the precaution dose will be the of the same vaccine that was administered as the first and second jabs.

Bhushan added that no fresh registrations would be required for the precaution dose as all the beneficiaries are already registered on the CoWIN portal.

It was emphasised in the meeting all vaccinations must be registered in the portal, whilethe options of online appointment and walk-in registration will be made available at the private vaccination centres.

The states and union territories were also advised to accelerate the administration of the free first and second dose of Covid vaccines to children above 12 years of age and optimal administration of the precaution dose for healthcare workers, frontline workers and citizens above 60 years at government inoculation centres.