Here are the latest updates from Japan and beyond on the coronavirus outbreak:
As of 11:55 p.m., Sunday, Sept. 20 (Japan time)
- Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga and U.S. President Donald Trump agreed to further strengthen the Japan-U.S. security alliance and work together to tackle the coronavirus pandemic on Sunday night in their first phone call since Suga took office.
- Camping has been growing in popularity and sales of related goods rising in recent months in Japan as people wanting to go out with friends and family members during the COVID-19 pandemic turn to outdoor recreation.
As of 11 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 19 (Japan time)
- Japan on Saturday relaxed a rule limiting the size of crowds at professional sports matches, movie theaters and other events amid signs of a recent plateauing in nationwide coronavirus cases
- More Japanese milk manufacturers are switching to cartons with plastic caps amid the coronavirus pandemic as a way to reduce possible infection as consumers no longer need come into contact with the pouring surface when they open the container.
- National parks across Japan have improved internet access and taken other steps to attract teleworkers as the coronavirus pandemic has increased interest in "workation" -- a vacation that combines business and leisure in which people work remotely at their destinations.
- The Japanese government has decided to set up a system to exempt athletes competing at next year's Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games from entry restrictions currently placed on 159 countries and regions due to the novel coronavirus that forced the games' postponement, sources familiar with the matter said Friday.
Japan and beyond: Week in Photos - September 12~18
As of 11 p.m., Friday, Sept. 18 (Japan time)
- Japan received an estimated 8,700 foreign travelers in August, down 99.7 percent from a year earlier, amid the coronavirus pandemic, though showing a month-on-month pickup in volume, government data showed Friday.
- A member of the House of Representatives has tested positive for the novel coronavirus and been admitted to a hospital, the lower house's secretariat said Friday, the first confirmed infection of a Japanese lawmaker.
- The number of confirmed novel coronavirus cases worldwide surpassed the 30 million mark on Friday, with some 940,000 deaths for a mortality rate of around 3 percent, according to a tally from Johns Hopkins University in the United States.
- Japanese travel agencies and hotels began Friday accepting reservations for trips to and from Tokyo starting Oct. 1 under the government's subsidy program, which was launched in July excluding the capital due to a spike in coronavirus cases there.
Useful resources for foreign residents and visitors in Japan
- Tokyo Metropolitan Government's "Tokyo Coronavirus Support Center for Foreign Residents (TOCOS)" multilingual hotline
- Available in Simple Japanese, English, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, Nepali, Indonesian, Tagalog, Thai, Portuguese, Spanish, French, Khmer, and Burmese, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays except national holidays.
0120-296-004 (toll free) - AMDA Medical Information Center's "Multilingual Consultation Service"
- Available in Simple Japanese and English, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays. Also available in Chinese, Korean, Portuguese, Spanish, Tagalog, Thai, and Vietnamese on designated weekdays. Check schedule here.
03-6233-9266 - Tokyo Metropolitan Government's COVID-19 info
https://stopcovid19.metro.tokyo.lg.jp/en/flow/ - Tokyo Metropolitan Government hotline
- Available in English, Chinese, Korean and Japanese, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
0570-550571
- Available via fax for those with hearing impairments
03-5388-1396 - Japan National Tourism Organization's "Guide for when you are feeling ill"
- Multilingual clinic/hospital search available in English, Korean, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Japanese
https://www.jnto.go.jp/emergency/eng/mi_guide.html - JNTO's "Japan Visitor Hotline"
- Available in English, Chinese, Korean and Japanese 24 hours a day
050-3816-2787
+81-50-3816-2787 (from overseas)
http://www.mlit.go.jp/kankocho/content/001328767.pdf - Japan's health ministry hotline
- Available in Japanese only, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
0120-565653 - World Health Organization's "Q&A on coronaviruses"
https://www.who.int/news-room/q-a-detail/q-a-coronaviruses