Italy reported 189 new deaths in 24 hours on Thursday, taking the total death toll in just under three weeks since the outbreak began to 1016.
Italy has the second-highest number of deaths after China, according to official data.
The number of daily infections rose to 2651, from 2313 on Wednesday, reaching 15,113 overall.
This total figure includes the deceased and recovered.
The nation’s civil protection agency said that, of those originally infected, 1258 had fully recovered compared to 1045 the day before.
This means the total number of active cases in Italy is now at 12,839.
Some 1153 people were in intensive care against a previous 1028.
More than 600 of these intensive care patients are in the Lombardy region, which is the epicentre of the outbreak.
In total, 16 of Italy’s regions have now recorded at least one death linked to coronavirus.
The country has so far conducted over 73,000 tests for the virus.
With the rapid increase in cases in Italy, the government has imposed a nationwide lockdown to contain the spread of the virus, which includes closing all non-essential stores.
Quarantine measures enforced include a ban on public gatherings, the closure of cinemas and tourist attractions, the suspension of sporting events and strict travel restrictions until April 3.
Di Maio is hopeful the new measures will help Italy fight the virus.
“Italy was the first nation in Europe to be affected so badly,” he told BBC.
“But I hope it also means that Italy is the first one to leave the emergency behind.”
Di Maio urged Italians to adhere to the nationwide lockdown imposed on Tuesday.
“If a doctor and a nurse can work for 24 hours non-stop, we can give up leaving our own home,” he said.
“The huge majority of citizens are respecting the rules.
“Those who aren’t will face sanctions: either fines or criminal charges.”
Italy is now facing its biggest crisis since World War II and the country’s economy has been hit hard by the coronavirus outbreak.
The Italian government announced on Wednesday it would spend up to €25 billion to fight the outbreak and relieve some of the intense strain from the country’s hospitals and economy.
Italy’s Economy Minister Roberto Gualtieri said half the money would be used immediately and the other half reserved and tapped should the health crisis spiral out of control.
