A total of 85,222 Israelis have contracted the novel coronavirus since the start of the pandemic, meaning that Israel's number of confirmed cases now exceeds the number of cases reported in China (84,712), the Health Ministry reported Tuesday.
According to Health Ministry data, there were 24,608 active or symptomatic cases in Israel as of Tuesday morning, 256 of whom were identified after midnight Monday. In the 24-hour period from midnight Sunday to midnight Monday, 22,762 coronavirus tests were conducted nationwide, and 1,640 came back positive.
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As of Tuesday morning, Israel's death toll stood at 613.
There were 811 COVID patients hospitalized, 386 of whom were listed in serious condition. Of those, 110 were on ventilators. However, this represents a drop in the number of patients in serious condition, which stood at 404 on Sunday.
Another 159 were listed in moderate condition.
Meanwhile, 1,976 health care workers were in quarantine as of Tuesday, including 250 doctors, 590 nurses, and 1,136 members of other health care professions.
Meanwhile, the Health Ministry has issued updated guidelines for coronavirus testing and quarantine.
The new regulations allow for a shortened period in quarantine for medical workers who were exposed to a confirmed coronavirus carrier at work. A health care worker quarantined after such contact can be tested twice, the first time five to eight days after the last contact with the carrier, and again on the 10th day. If those tests come back negative, the worker will be released from quarantine.
The new regulations also state that an asymptomatic person who is flagged in contact tracing for a confirmed carrier can be tested for the virus, something that until now has been allowed only for family members of confirmed carriers.
Under the new regulations, anyone who undergoes elective surgical procedures or fertility treatments must be tested and found negative for the virus 72 hours prior to the procedure.
Israelis traveling abroad will be tested for coronavirus according to the requirements of the country they will be visiting.
On Monday, Health Minister Yuli Edelstein urged the public to be tested after the health and defense ministries signed a deal with the private MyRating lab operator. The additional two labs to be provided under the agreement are expected to increase the country's capacity for corona testing from 30,000 per day to 60,000.
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