Japan to lift emergency COVID-19 curbs, but gradually

Japan will lift a coronavirus state of emergency in all regions on Thursday for the first time in nearly six months, as the number of new cases and deaths falls and the strain on the medical system eases, Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said.

Daily cases have fallen nationwide from more than 25,000 last month to 1,128 on Monday, but the opening will be gradual with some curbs on restaurants and large-scale events staying in place for about a month.

The government will introduce a certification system whereby only approved restaurants can stay open until 9 p.m and a ban on serving alcohol will be lifted everywhere unless local governors object.

"Thanks to progress in vaccination and administration of neutralising antibody drugs, we are entering a phase where medical services can be offered in a stable manner even if a certain degree of infections take place," Suga told a coronavirus task force meeting.

Japan has largely avoided explosive outbreaks seen in countries like the United States and India although it fared poorly by East Asian standards with about 1.7 million cases and just over 17,500 deaths.

The Delta variant sparked a fifth wave of infections in Japan that drove infections to record levels last month, putting so much strain on hospitals that some patients ended up dying at home without receiving care.

Source & Credit: Reuters.com

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