The investment was directed to three hospitals in Hubei Province, the heart of the coronavirus outbreak, for building treatment units for severe cases, said the National Development and Reform Commission.
It was mainly meant for purchasing key medical equipment including non-invasive ventilators and ECG monitors to help cure more patients in critical conditions.
The commission said it will prioritize medical treatment and quarantine facilities in future investments to combat the virus.
* Chinese health authorities said Saturday (February 8) that they received reports of 3,399 new confirmed cases of novel coronavirus infection and 86 deaths Friday from 31 provincial-level regions and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps.
The overall confirmed cases on the Chinese mainland had reached 34,546 by the end of Friday and 722 people had died of the disease.
* A total of 2,050 patients infected with the novel coronavirus had been discharged from hospital after recovery by the end of Friday, Chinese health authorities announced Saturday.
* Pangolins may be an intermediate host of the virus, as indicated by a study led by South China Agricultural University. Researchers found the metagenome sequence of the novel coronavirus strain separated from pangolins to be 99 percent identical to that from infected people.
* Wuhan, the epicenter of the novel coronavirus outbreak, is in a citywide mobilization to comb communities to ensure every confirmed or suspected patient is located and attended to as a senior official vowed to nail any official deserter "to history's pillar of shame."
* Beijing on Friday published the number of patients suspected to be infected with the novel coronavirus for the first time.
* A total of 1,600 beds in Leishenshan (Thunder God Mountain) Hospital will be delivered on February 8, said Hu Yabo, deputy mayor of Wuhan at a press conference on Friday. The city already has 8,895 beds in 28 designated hospitals for patients infected with the novel coronavirus, and 1,000 beds in Huoshenshan Hospital, which are being used for severe and critically ill patients.
* Acts of deliberately or permissibly spreading the coronavirus shall be punished as the crime of endangering public safety by dangerous means, according to the Ministry of Public Security (MPS). The MPS called on those who know that they have been infected or may be infected with the virus to seek and receive medical treatment in a timely manner, quarantine themselves at home and be responsible for the safety and health of themselves, their families and others.
