RAWALPINDI, Sept 29: Taking cognizance of the report submitted by special branch of police, the City District Government Rawalpindi (CDGR) on Thursday sealed three pathological laboratories for using expired kits and charging Rs170-180 per Complete Blood Count (CBC) test instead of Rs90 fixed by the provincial government.

After a brief pause, the CDGR re-launched drive against the pathological laboratories which were found overcharging for the CBC tests.

District Coordination Officer (DCO) Saqib Zafar told Dawn that the CDGR received reports from special branch of police that the pathological laboratories were fleecing the patients and demanding Rs170-180 per CBC test instead of Rs90.

Upon this, he said, the health department was directed to launch drive against pathological laboratories. He said earlier, he stopped the campaign to use all the staff of health department in fumigation and after receiving such reports, he directed them to start the campaign again.

He said the health department formed different teams to check all the private laboratories and warned their management to follow the directives of the provincial government otherwise stern action would be taken against them.

He said that two special teams had been deputed to check the laboratories in cantonment areas. He said some pathological laboratories were rendering public service and established their camps for free CBC tests in cantonment and city areas.

He said that the people should also avoid going to such laboratories which were demanding more money instead of Rs90 for CBC test. He said that they should contact DCO office and EDO health for complaints.

Meanwhile, the health department team led by District Quality Control Board Secretary Abid Saeed Baig accompanied by drug inspectors Shoiab Akhtar and Naveed Anwar visited Benazir Bhutto Road and found three private laboratories overcharging for the tests.

The team found the condition of three laboratories including Ayesha Laboratory, Care Ways Laboratory and Emirates Lab at Benazir Bhutto Road in front of Benazir Bhutto Hospital (BBH) unsatisfactory as they were using expired kits to conduct CBC tests. The drug inspectors said that these laboratories were working without qualified pathologists to examine the blood samples for dengue and CBC tests. They said that the sanitation condition of the laboratories were also not satisfactory.

They said that the team took reagents of pathological tests in its custody and sealed the laboratories. They said that they also visited Bilal Hospital and Heart International and checked the record and took samples of reagents of pathological test.

They said that there was no legislation in the province to check such laboratories as under Drug Act 1976, the health department could check the chemist shops only.