Urgent: Employees Should Not Pay for PCR Tests Out of Pocket; Minister's Decision Deemed Unconstitutional

The Constitutional Court has declared unconstitutional the directive issued by Minister of Health Anahit Avanesyan, which mandated unvaccinated workers to undergo regular PCR tests at their own expense.

During the announcement of the decision, the President of the Constitutional Court, Arman Dilanyan, stated: "The phrase 'at their own expense' in the sentence 'The employee performs the PCR test at their own expense' has been recognized as contradictory to Article 6, Parts 1 and 2, and Article 39 of the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia, thereby rendering it invalid."

According to the Court's decision, the definition of who pays for the testing is "beyond the jurisdiction of the Minister of Health." The Court's decision is final and becomes effective upon its publication.

It is worth noting that under the order of Minister of Health Anahit Avanesyan, starting from October 1, all working citizens in Armenia were required to provide their employer with either a certificate of vaccination against COVID-19 or submit a negative PCR test result every 14 days. The test was mandated to be conducted no more than 72 hours prior to submission.

On December 1, the frequency of PCR tests was altered, requiring employees to present test results weekly.