WUHAN — China has been pooling quality resources to step up treatment for severe and critical cases of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) in Wuhan, which account for about 18 percent of all the confirmed and hospitalized cases in the city, the National Health Commission (NHC) said on Feb 15.

Health authorities have designated hospitals in Wuhan, the epicenter of the outbreak, to receive severe and critically ill patients in isolated areas, said Jiao Yahui, an official with the NHC, at a news conference held in the city.

A team of experts makes daily evaluations on all of the hospitalized patients in severe condition and holds discussions and consultations on difficult and complicated cases. "We make sure that the patients receive timely and effective treatment," Jiao said.

Most of the patients whose symptoms are severe or ultimately deadly are seniors with existing diseases and were already in severe or critical condition when they were hospitalized, said Jiao.