Estimates are coming as cases and hospitals rise in Italy, which recently passed a grim milestone of 100,000 deaths.
Italy will be locked up nationwide for Easter weekend, a draft law order seen by Reuters on Friday said as the government fought to stop a new rise in coronavirus cases and hospitals.
Non-essential shops will be closed across the country from April 3 to April 5.
On these days, Italians are only allowed to leave their homes for work, health or emergency reasons.
The draft order also said loopholes will tighten on Monday, in “yellow” low-risk areas, where movement between towns will be severely restricted and restaurants and bars will be closed.
Along with nationwide measures, Italy will capitalize restrictions in its 20 regions according to a four-tier color coding system (white, yellow, orange and red) based on infection levels and revised weekly.
In red zones, restaurants, bars and unnecessary shops are closed. In contrast, in white areas, restaurants can open in the evening.
The order is expected to be agreed later on Friday.
Italy was the first Western country to suspend a national lock last year, as the virus became infected and the country became the center of the pandemic.
This week, a grim milestone was reached as Italy recorded 100,000 deaths from COVID-19 – a “terrible threshold”, new Prime Minister Mario Draghi said.
The recent rise in cases in Italy comes amid global efforts to vaccinate against the virus.
Under-Health Secretary Pierpaolo Sileri told Italian media on Thursday that he hopes two-thirds of the population will receive the first dose of vaccine in the summer, and the second dose by October.