COVID-19 epidemic is a major public health emergency in China with the fastest transmission, widest range of infections and the highest difficulty in control and prevention since the founding of the People's Republic of China, National Health Commission Minister Ma Xiaowei said on Friday during a press conference held in Wuhan City.

Ma told the press that they have made improvements in treating severe cases.

"Through pathological anatomy, we learned the organs that were damaged the most by the virus, and clarified the direction of the clinical treatment," he said, adding that experts have improved treatment methods based on the findings.

The minister stressed the importance of temporary hospitals. "We have expanded medical resources in a short time," he said, noting that "It would be difficult to add that many beds in other ways."

The large-scale adoption of temporary hospitals is a landmark in the history of medical rescue in China, the minister said. 

According to Ma, 16 temporary hospitals have been built in Wuhan with more than 13,000 beds. There are currently about 7,600 patients being treated in these hospitals, and 5,600 beds are still empty. 

"We have achieved zero infection, zero deaths and zero returns in temporary hospitals," Ma said, adding that there are beds available.