Covid-19 Cases Surge and Isfahan Hospitalizations Reach Critical as Curfew is Imposed

iranwire.com – Starting on November 10 and lasting for a month, all businesses in Tehran, provincial capitals and populous city, except essential services, pharmacies and food stores must close at 6pm, President Rouhani announced at a meeting of the National Coronavirus Taskforce.

Rouhani emphasized that “family gatherings and parties” contribute to the spread of coronavirus and said that, since in winter such gathering are going to increase, the taskforce is considering the issue and will make appropriate decisions at next week’s meeting. He called on the armed forces, mosques, citizens, the paramilitary Basij and all institutions to step in to fight the transmission of the disease. “Current statistics are not good,” Rouhani said, “but we should see some positive results in the coming weeks in provincial capitals, 43 counties, and the other 46 counties that have been added to them,” he added, referring to recently imposed restrictions in these areas. “At the same time, we may still need some [more] restrictions.”

Explaining the new restrictions, Alireza Raeesi, spokesman for the National Coronavirus Taskforce, said that essential services including medical centers, pharmacies, fire departments, ambulance services and other services such as water, electricity, phone and food sellers such as supermarkets and chain stores could remain open. But other businesses must close at 6pm and remain closed until the next morning.

New, Quick Test Kits

In recent weeks, the number of coronavirus tests conducted in Iran has reached 35,000-40,000 per day and, according to Alireza Raeesi, this number can be increased to between 70,000-80,000 per day because “quick tests are being developed inside Iran” and “a large quantity of quick test kits are being imported.” “The advantage of these tests is that it takes 20 to 25 minutes to return the result and, since they do not need special equipment or skills, these quick tests can be very helpful in breaking the chain of transmission,” he said. “We hope to increase the number of test labs to over 1,200 and even conduct more tests in rural areas.”

The Continuing Battle between the Health Ministry and “Islamic” Medicine

Since the outbreak of coronavirus in Iran more than eight months ago, some followers of traditional or “Islamic” medicine have repeatedly tried to present their potions as cures for Covid-19. What is more, their claims have been promoted by some media associated with the regime and even by state-run radio and television. In the most recent case, it was claimed that Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences has discovered the “definitive cure” for coronavirus.

“Nobody in the world has produced a definitive cure for Covid-19,” said Kianoush Jahanpour, speaking for Iran’s Drug and Food Administration, in response to this claim. “Studies have been conducted on traditional drugs and, based on these studies, some will be marketed gradually, not as a cure but to help in the treatment of coronavirus. These drugs cannot cure this disease.”

“Anybody who is familiar with scientific terminology know that choosing terms such as ‘definitive cure’ or ‘one hundred percent cure’ has no scientific value,” he added.

The Paramilitary Basij to Take Coronavirus Test Samples to Homes in Tehran

Members of the paramilitary Basij have meanwhile started to visit homes in the nation’s capital to take test samples from Tehran residents who have been in contact with people infected with coronavirus, reported Babak Eshrati, vice president of Iran University of Medical Sciences. This operation is taking place with the cooperation of Tehran municipality and began in the city’s District 18. “Preventing people suspected of coronavirus infection from leaving home is the primary goal of this project, and it will be soon carried out in other parts of Tehran as well,” Eshrati said. “To carry out this project a number of Basiji volunteers have been trained to take samples for testing inside homes.”

“To provide the necessary spiritual and material support, a person from the neighborhood mosque will also be present at the home of the infected individual,” he added.

Provinces Round-up

In the past 24 hours, the number of confirmed or suspected Covid-19 patients who are hospitalized in Isfahan province exceeded 2,000. In mid-October, Behrouz Kalidari, vice president of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, had announced that 2,000 to 2,500 coronavirus hospitalizations would be the breaking point for the health system in the province. According to Kalidari, if the number of hospitalizations exceeds this number patients must line up for beds, the quality of treatments will decline and fatalities will rise.

The situation in Alborz province continues to be critical. In the past 24 hours, 17 other Covid-19 patients lost their lives, reported Dr. Mohammad Fathi, president of Alborz University of Medical Sciences. Currently 906 confirmed or suspected coronavirus patients are hospitalized in this province.

Due to the surge of coronavirus, cemeteries and day markets in Qazvin will be closed until further notice, announced Siavosh Taher-Khani, the city’s mayor.

Iran’s Latest Coronavirus Statistics

In her daily briefing for November 7, health ministry’s spokeswoman Dr. Sima Sadat Lari announced the official coronavirus statistics for the past 24 hours:

Dr. Lari also reported that all 31 Iranian provinces are in red, orange or yellow states of alert.

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