TEHRAN – Health Minister Saeed Namaki announced that the number of centers offering healthcare services to COVID-19 patients will increase from 1,200 to 5,000 in the future.

In outpatient facilities, the diagnostic tests will be free of charge, in addition to the medicines needed by patients. 

People who are quarantined at home or in quarantine centers are visited daily by a doctor and health care team.

Due to the high prevalence of disease over the past few weeks, the National Headquarters for Coronavirus Control will implement a plan, according to which all occupations, except for emergency services and basic food suppliers, will be closed for two weeks in more than 100 cities in an attempt to curb the virus, which will go into effect on November 21.

COVID-19 cases, deaths skyrocketing 

In a press briefing on Monday, Health Ministry spokesperson Sima-Sadat Lari confirmed 13,053 new cases of COVID-19 infection, raising the total number of infections to 775,121. She added that 564,699 patients have so far recovered, but 5,677 still remain in critical conditions of the disease.

During the past 24 hours, coronavirus daily deaths and new cases hit the record high, as 486 patients have lost their lives, bringing the total number of deaths to 41,979, she added.

Lari noted that so far 5,545,444 COVID-19 tests have been conducted across the country. She said the high-risk “red” zones include provinces of Tehran, Isfahan, Qom, East Azarbaijan, South Khorasan, Semnan, Qazvin, Lorestan, Ardebil, Khuzestan, Kermanshah, Kohgiluyeh-Boyerahmad, Gilan, Bushehr, Zanjan, Ilam, Khorasan Razavi, Mazandaran, Chaharmahal-Bakhtiari, Alborz, West Azarbaijan, Markazi, Kerman, North Khorasan, Hamedan, Yazd, and Kordestan.

The provinces of Hormozgan, Fars, and Golestan and Sistan-Baluchestan are also on alert.

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