Moscow, in U-turn, to assume all pneumonia patients may have coronavirus

FILE PHOTO: A medical specialist puts on protective gear during a demonstration prior to the opening of a new section for treatment of patients, affected by the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), at N.I. Pirogov National Medical and Surgical Centre in Moscow, Russia April 3, 2020. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov/File Photo

MOSCOW (Reuters) - The city of Moscow's health department said on Thursday it would begin regarding all pneumonia patients as potential sufferers of the new coronavirus and route them to hospitals accordingly, after doctors raised concerns about the accuracy of tests used to diagnose the virus.

The policy change was made at the request of doctors at hospitals specially designated to treat the new coronavirus, which often causes pneumonia. Tests for COVID-19, the respiratory disease caused by the new coronavirus, were producing accurate results only 70%-80% of the time, the doctors said.