Govt pursuing a holistic strategy to combat coronavirus: Mirza

(Karachi) Special Assistant to Prime Minister on National Health Services Dr Zafar Mirza has said that the government is pursuing a holistic strategy to combat coronavirus.

In a statement on Wednesday with reference to the WHO letter, he said the government took best decisions in the best interest of the people. He said, "We have to make tough policy choices to strike a balance between lives and livelihoods."

Mirza maintained that Pakistan has gradually eased lockdown and restrictions but at the same time it has focused on enforcement of SOPs in shops, industries, mosques and public transport etc. "Wearing masks has been made compulsory in the country," he stated.

The special assistant highlighted that the government developed a robust tracing, testing and quarantine policy to identify hotspots and cordon off them. "Currently there are more than seven hundred such smart lockdowns in place."

He mentioned that the government is ramping up of the health system to cater to the growing number of patients.