Italy doubles ventilators for possible 2nd wave

Italy's head of the coronavirus pandemic strategy says the country is prepared for a second wave of infections even bigger than the first if its gradual reopening leads to a surge in new cases.

Domenico Arcuri told the lower Chamber of Deputies that Italy's 20 regions now have twice as many ventilators than currently needed and the 5,200 intensive care beds Italy had before the pandemic had nearly doubled to 9,000.

Italy, the European epicenter of the pandemic with more than 27,000 dead, entered the crisis with a fraction of the ICU capacity compared to other developed nations.

Arcuri told lawmakers that beds in sub-intensive care had increased six-fold, the same increase in Italy's bed capacity in infectious disease and pneumology wards.

Italy's planned reopening begins May 4.