A halt in supply of scrub typhus diagnostic kits from the government level has forced people to visit private health facilities.

The Chitwan District Public Health Office (DPHO) says it has not received the kits from the centre for the past four months.

Prior to this, the DPHO used to get the diagnostic kits from the Department of Health Services. The facility for diagnosing scrub typhus, a disease caused by an infection with the Rickettsia bacteria, is currently available only at the Chitwan Medical College, which charges Rs 2,500 per test. The service is provided for free at government hospitals. Fleas, mites (chiggers), lice, or ticks transmit the disease when they bite humans.

Narhari Sharma, officiating chief of the DPHO, said efforts are on to get the diagnostic kits from the centre. I have no idea why the centre has not sent us the equipment yet, he said. 

Four people have died from the disease this fiscal year.

According to DPHO official Ram KC, as many as 1,627 people have so far undergone test for scrub typhus and 504 of them tested positive.