Japan will not need to reimpose restrictions on food establishments and public events — even during a state of emergency — thanks to a so-called vaccine-test package, the central government’s coronavirus subcommittee announced in a set of proposals Tuesday morning.
The government on Thursday announced a pandemic exit strategy that will ease restrictions on travel, dining and public events for vaccinated people in a bid to reignite the economy, restore public morale and incentivize inoculations.
Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga announced Wednesday that the country’s state of emergency will be expanded from 13 prefectures to 21, broadening the nation’s strictest measure for a third time as the current coronavirus wave worsens.
What began in late June as a COVID-19 rebound in Tokyo has escalated within weeks into a nationwide surge, forcing the central government to enact the country’s strictest measures in more than a dozen of its largest prefectures.
The Tokyo metropolitan area’s health care system is rapidly becoming strained, as a shortage of medical staff is making it increasingly difficult for hospitals and quarantine facilities to take in more people with COVID-19.
Hospital beds for COVID-19 patients are increasingly in short supply as the rapidly growing outbreak in the Tokyo metropolitan region continues to inundate the local health care system with new cases.
Each story is different, but a common thread persists: The pandemic is upending all aspects of their lives
Donning the protective gear required to enter the pressurized hospital room of a COVID-19 patient has become second nature for Nao Watarumi.
Nationwide cases of COVID-19 surpassed 10,000 for the first time Thursday as the central government prepared to expand the country’s ongoing state of emergency to Kanagawa, Saitama and Chiba prefectures.
Tokyo reported a record 2,848 daily coronavirus infections on Tuesday, four days after the opening of the Olympics, with health experts warning that the worst is yet to come.
Coronavirus patients and gold medalists continue to emerge everyday in Japan, but one of these groups is garnering more attention than the other as virus concerns are sidelined by the excitement of the Tokyo Games.
Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga announced Thursday the country’s state of emergency will be lifted on Sunday in all but Okinawa Prefecture, as cases continue to decline nationwide and the fourth wave of the pandemic appears to have crested weeks ago.
As Japan nears the planned end of its third state of emergency, infectious disease experts warn that a fourth declaration in Tokyo could be right around the corner. A team of scientists led by Hiroshi Nishiura, a member of the health ministry’s expert panel on the virus, projected that a fourth state of emergency in the capital may become necessary in August if the current emergency is lifted on June 20.
Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga is set to declare states of emergency in Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto and Hyogo prefectures on Friday as the country resorts to contingency measures to contain a fourth wave of the coronavirus.
The first doses of Pfizer Inc.’s COVID-19 vaccine will begin to be administered to 40,000 essential workers across 100 medical facilities on Wednesday, Taro Kono, the Cabinet minister in charge of vaccines, said during a news conference Tuesday.
Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga on Wednesday expanded the country’s state of emergency to Osaka, Kyoto, Hyogo, Aichi, Gifu, Tochigi and Fukuoka, making the order effective in 11 of Japan’s 47 prefectures
