infectious disease specialist alessandro perella says it's not just about the numbers. >> we have aner of positive people. positive. not an increase in number of patients. it's very different. >> reporter: what's different is the testing. earlier this year, only those showing covid-like symptoms were tested. now, everyone can do it. the majority of people who prove positive are asymptomatic, isolating until recovery. the number of people in intensive care now approximately a fifth of what it was before. >> day-day, italy is reporting record increases in the number of new coronavirus cases, but at the same time, italy is testing like never before at this hospital here in naples seven days a week, at least a thousand tests are conducted quickly and for free. five times as many tests are being conducted now than at the height of the first wave in march. a once-unwieldy process, now routine. how long was the wait? half an hour, says abramo. when will you receive the result, i ask? >> the whole family did it. tomorrow morning, we'll get a message with the results by phone, he says. there'