The number of COVID-19 patients are steadily rising due to the new variant and it has already exceeded the capacity of the government's health sector, said secretary of the GMOA Dr. Sonal Fernando.
The new variant is very severe and the most of the positive patients are hospitalised with conditions such as pneumonia, he added.
The number of ICU beds required to treat the rising number of patients have also gone, making the situation very critical, he said.
Previously, when there were 8000 patients, the requirement for ICU beds stood at 17, but now it has gone up to 36, he said.
If urgent measures are not taken to control the situation with the collaboration of all the related sectors, Sri Lanka will have to pay the same situation the India is facing today, he added.
(Mirror)