Japan, Tokyo –As Japan deals with a statewide rise of COVID-19 cases, senior government officials announced Monday that 30 of the country’s 47 prefectures would be declared in a state of emergency in the coming days.
According to informed sources, an official decision on the topic will likely be revealed Tuesday when Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida meets with key Cabinet members later in the day about the newest prefectures seeking to be placed under the COVID-19 emergency measure.
At a lower house budget committee meeting, Kishida said Monday that “we will respond with well-balanced measures depending on the characteristics of the Omicron strain by improving the procedural flow of prevention, identification, and early treatment,“
The final decision will be made after the government consults with its advisory panel of virus experts, who, if the plan is approved, will likely allow more prefectures to implement more stringent anti-virus measures, in addition to the 16 prefectures that are already under the virus emergency measure as of Monday.
The action comes as the number of COVID-19 cases in the United States reached a new high of 54,576 on Saturday, as the highly transmissible Omicron virus variety continues to wreak havoc throughout the country.
A quasi-state of emergency authorises prefectural governors and authorities to impose tighter anti-viral measures, such as requiring restaurants and bars to close early and refrain from selling alcohol, and big indoor and outdoor venues to limit the number of participants at events, among other things.
