The 23,767 coronavirus tests conducted nationwide between midnight Monday and midnight Tuesday resulted in 1,692 new confirmed cases of coronavirus.
As of Wednesday morning, eight additional Israelis had succumbed to the virus, bringing the country's death toll from COVID to 561 since the start of the epidemic.
Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter
The number of patients hospitalized in serious condition rose by 11 and stood at 344 on Wednesday, compared to 326 a week ago.
There were 24,635 confirmed active or symptomatic cases in Israel as of Wednesday morning.
On Wednesday afternoon, the government's corona cabinet was scheduled to meet to discuss a new plan from national coronavirus coordinator Professor Ronni Gamzu to reduce the spread of the virus.
The ministers in the cabinet were slated to decide whether or not to reinstate business activity on weekends. Health Minister Yuli Edelstein said Tuesday morning during a visit to Wolfson Medical Center in Holon that it was urgent to stop the spread of the virus, but there was no public health justification for keeping businesses that normally operate on weekends closed.
"We can't live with these numbers for long," Edelstein said.
"Even if there is no additional rise, we have to flatten the curve. We will try to institute unified criteria for restrictions. One thing is clear: If we don't maintain a full closure on weekends, there is no point to partial limitations on activity," the minister added.
Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!
