A positive COVID-19 test is no longer needed for admission to a COVID facility, reported ANI. This came after the Union Health Ministry revised the national policy for admission of COVID patients to COVID facilities.

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A suspect case of COVID-19 will be admitted to the suspect ward of COVID Care Centre (CCC), Dedicated COVID Health Centre (DCHC) or Dedicated COVID Hospital (DCH), as the case may be, the Union Health Ministry said. 

No patient will be refused services, which include medications such as oxygen or essential drugs. A person who belongs to a different city will also be provided all the services.

The ministry further added that no patient will be refused admission to a COVID facility if he/she is unable to produce a valid identity card that does not belong to the city where the hospital is located.

Admissions to a hospital must be based on need, said the Health Ministry, the news agency reported. 

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The change in the national policy came as India is battling a ferocious second COVID wave, with more than 300,000 cases and 3,000 deaths being recorded daily.

As of Saturday, India has recorded more than 21.8 million COVID cases and 238,270 deaths.