Iran: Coronavirus Cases Closer to 85,000

Iran’s tally of confirmed COVID-19 cases neared 85,000 on Tuesday, as the country continued to report double-digit numbers of deaths, health officials said.
Infections from the coronavirus disease rose by 1,297 to reach 84,802 and the death toll increased to 5,297, with 88 new deaths in the past 24 hours, Health Ministry Spokesman Kianoush Jahanpour was quoted as saying by ISNA.
“So far, 60,965 patients have recovered and been discharged from hospitals,” he said, adding that more than 3,300 remain in critical condition.
Iran has carried out 365,723 tests across the country to identify those who have contracted the infectious disease.
The health official said, “We hope that people will help combat COVID-19 by observing personal and public hygiene as well as adhering to Smart Distancing.”
Iran launched its Smart Distancing Initiative after the 13-day Iranian New Year holidays to address the pandemic without fully hitting pause on the economy.
Under the plan, low- and medium-risk businesses have resumed operations after committing to comply with strict guidelines devised by the Health Ministry, although the public are still urged to stay at home.

Downtrend 

According to Jahanpour, 126 laboratories across the country are currently equipped to test patients suspected of having caught the deadly virus.
The official noted that the downtrend has continued in the past few days and “we hope to bring better news to the people in the coming days”.
Following the identification of two patients in the central city of Qom, Iran closed schools and later dormitories and universities to stem the spread of the outbreak.
Schools, universities, ceremony halls, sport and cultural centers, as well as high-risk businesses, remain closed. Low- and medium-risk businesses were allowed to reopen in a phased manner but high-risk lines of work such as beauty salons, gyms, and swimming pools are still on lockdown.
Iran is handing out cash payments to those most vulnerable to the economic ramifications of the pandemic and offering financial incentives for small- and medium-sized enterprises that have not laid off employees.
Confirmed coronavirus cases around the world crossed 2.5 million on Tuesday and death numbers rose above 170,000. The United States accounts for a quarter of deaths caused by the respiratory illness.