The head of the Gimbe scientific
foundation on Thursday accused Lombardy regional officials of
"doctoring" the northern region's data on the coronavirus, a
claim the region dismissed as false.
"They are working some sleight of hand on the numbers," said
Nino Cartabellotta, a surgeon.
The regional government responded by saying his words were
"extremely serious, offensive and above all not in line with the
truth".
The region said that "no one, starting with the ISS (Higher
Health Institute), has ever called into question the quality of
our work".
It said the data in Lombardy were "published in a transparent
way".
The regional government voiced the hope that Cartabellotta
would retract his statements.
Lombardy has seen about half of Italy's 33,000 COVID deaths.
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