An additional three Israelis have succumbed to COVID-19, bringing the national death toll from the virus to 187, the Health Ministry reported Wednesday.
The ministry also reported a concerning spike in the number of new confirmed cases. As of Tuesday evening, the number of corona cases in the country stood at 13,942, whereas on Wednesday the ministry was reported 14,326.
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Over 400 patients are listed in serious condition, including 111 who were on ventilators. Another 124 were listed in moderate condition, with another 8,906 cases listed as light or minor.
In total, 483 corona patients are being treated in isolated wards at Israel's hospitals and medical centers. Another 2,210 are being treated or are in isolation at hotels, with another 6,469 at home.
As of Wednesday, 4,961 Israelis have recovered from the virus.
Despite the latest spike in new cases, Health Ministry data indicates that the rate of infection has, in fact, slowed. The rate at which the number of confirmed cases in the country doubles now stands at 20 days, compared to the total cases doubling every three days, which was the case at the height of the outbreak.
In the past month, an average of 266 new cases have been recorded each day.
Also on Wednesday, hospital directors lashed out after Israel Hayom reported that Health Ministry Director-General Moshe Bar Siman-Tov had warned hospital administrators that continuing to provide non-essential medical treatment would be considered a violation of the law.
Dr. Zeev Feldman, head of pediatric neurosurgery at Sheba Medical Center at Tel Hashomer, who also serves as chairman of the Organization of State Employed Physicians of Israel and deputy head of the Israeli Medical Association, said Wednesday that "It is inconceivable that the Health Ministry director general will turn all the directors of the hospitals that are leading the battle against corona into criminals with a wave of his hand, and threaten them with criminal action under the Public Health Directive."
"Hospital directors, who are currently treating corona patients, are at the same time preparing to treat the rest of the citizens of Israel who are not sick with corona and need treatment. They are doing their utmost to save lives on every front and provide solutions for patients based on medical considerations while taking pains to protect patients and medical staff," Feldman said.
"Casting doubt on the judgment of those who are at the front of the battle for the health of the public is not only an outrage, it is also inappropriate. I urge the Health Ministry director-general to take back his threat," Feldman said.
As part of Israel's campaign to contain the coronavirus, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided Tuesday not to allow bereaved families to visit the nation's cemeteries or memorial sites on Memorial Day for Fallen Soldiers and Victims of Terrorism, which begins on the evening of Monday, April 27.
The decision was made in a meeting attended by the heads of the health, public security, defense, culture, and sport ministries, along with the head of the National Security Council and the attorney general.
The Israel Police has been assigned the responsibility of closing off access to the sites, and the families are being encouraged to use the days leading up to Memorial Day to visit cemeteries in accordance with social distancing regulations.
A representative of the police said in the meeting, "We won't confront bereaved families. We won't stop bereaved families at the cemetery gates, we'll set up roadblocks about a kilometer away."
Eli Ben-Shem, chairman of the Yad Labanim organization, which commemorates fallen soldiers and provides support to bereaved families, urged families to abide by the government's decision and visit cemeteries in the days before Memorial Day, to avoid crowds.
Tami Shelach, chairwoman of the IDF Widows and Orphans Organization, said, "These are difficult days for all of us, as we fight coronavirus, but who knows better than we do that the important thing right now is to preserve life. The IDF Widows and Orphans Organization supports the prime minister in his decision."
Ariel Kahana and Itsik Saban contributed to this report
