ROME, Feb. 24 (Xinhua) -- The Italian government has been taking additional steps to prevent the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19) since it declared a state of emergency on Jan. 31. Despite that, more than 200 people have tested positive for the virus since then -- most of them identified in the last three days -- with seven deaths as of Monday.
The first cases of the virus infections in Italy were found in Rome in January, but a dramatic increase in cases has taken place since Feb. 21 and is centered around the northern Italian cities of Cremona, Lodi, and Pavia. Government officials say they are taking precautions nationwide.
"We have taken steps no other country has taken in our effort to contain the risk of the contagion," Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said in a television interview on Monday. "Now with this emergency, the situation becomes more complex."
The state of emergency allowed health strategies to be coordinated at the national level, and for those suspected of being infected to be quarantined or hospitalized even if it is against their will.
Since then, authorities have installed heat sensors at international airports and at some train stations to identify new arrivals who may have a fever which is considered to be an early sign of infection. Italy was among the first European countries to take such steps.
Meanwhile, most events that would see gatherings of large number of people have been canceled or postponed, including school field trips, cinema screenings, professional soccer games and the annual carnival in the city of Venice.
In cities near the areas with infected cases, schools, museums, courts, and government offices have been closed. Any court case delayed by the closures will be reopened in the future with no impact on the statute of limitations that may be applicable to the cases.
On Sunday, the Council of Ministers approved a decree drafted by Conte's office that requires any municipal area where at least one person has tested positive for coronavirus and where the source of the infection is not known, to immediately make every effort to limit any further spread of the virus, including cutting off non-essential access to the area in question.
Roberto Burioni, professor of microbiology and virology with Vita-Salute San Raffaele University in Milan, told Xinhua that anyone in Italy showing any kind of fever should immediately be tested via the use of a swab to determine if they are infected.
"Even those who do not show serious symptoms must be analyzed," Burioni said, adding "We cannot take risks."
The government has installed surveillance equipment in areas at risk and anyone who displays symptoms of being infected and does not report them or who leaves a quarantine area without permission can face criminal penalties.
"In cases of emergency the government can hold dramatic powers and this is one of those cases," said author and historian Antonio Amadeo in an interview. "There is not much the government can do than it is already doing short of forced searches, which is a step only used in wartime or against organized crimes."
According to the World Health Organization, Italy now has the third-highest number of infected individuals behind China and South Korea. But the Geneva-based group cautioned that that does not mean coronavirus should be considered a pandemic, the name for an epidemic that has spread uncontrollably across multiple countries.
Giovanni Maga, director of the Institute of Molecular Genetics IGM-CNR in the National Research Council, shared the view, saying the coronavirus situation cannot be called an epidemic in Italy.
"Risks are low, and we have to avoid being overly alarmed," Maga said in a television interview. "The picture could obviously change in the coming days, but our health system is on maximum alert and so far it has proven capable of managing outbreaks that may arise."
