Here are the latest COVID-19 updates from Japan and beyond:
As of 11 p.m., Tuesday, Aug. 24
- The Tokyo Paralympics opened on Tuesday night following a one-year postponement, with questions unanswered over whether it is safe to hold the world's largest event for athletes with disabilities during a public health crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
- Japan plans to expand the COVID-19 state of emergency covering Tokyo and 12 other areas to eight more prefectures as it looks to quell the country's largest wave of infections, government sources said Tuesday.
- Some Tokyoites said Tuesday they remain unsure about the Paralympics being held in their city when a COVID-19 state of emergency remains in place and while the capital and other areas of Japan are experiencing surging infections.
- Three-time Paralympic champion Markus "Blade Jumper" Rehm is well aware of the widespread concern in Japan about hosting the Tokyo Games amid the coronavirus pandemic, but he has promised to do his part to protect public health.
- U.S. health authorities said Monday they have granted full approval for the Pfizer Inc. COVID-19 vaccine, making it the first such vaccine in the country where three have been administered under emergency use to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus.
As of 11 p.m., Monday, Aug. 23
- The president of the Tokyo Games organizing committee on Monday pledged to take all possible measures against the coronavirus to hold a safe Paralympics for participants and the Japanese public, on the eve of the opening of the largest global event for athletes with disabilities.
- Japan's health ministry and the Tokyo metropolitan government decided Monday to ask hospitals in the capital to secure beds and accept as many COVID-19 patients as possible, as a recent resurgence of infections outstrips the city's medical system.
- Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen received a locally developed coronavirus vaccine at a hospital in Taipei on Monday as the self-governed island began rolling out the Medigen vaccine the same day.
- The Olympics provided some much-needed distraction to a world dealing with the coronavirus pandemic, now Tokyo's summer of sport continues with Paralympians taking the stage.
Japan and beyond: Week in Photos - Aug 14~20
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)
https://www.seikatubunka.metro.tokyo.lg.jp/chiiki_tabunka/tabunka/tabunkasuishin/0000001452.html - 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/ - Tokyo Metropolitan Government hotline
https://stopcovid19.metro.tokyo.lg.jp/en/contacts
- Available in English, Chinese, Korean and Japanese, 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. (including weekends and holidays)
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"
https://www.japan.travel/en/plan/hotline/
- Available in English, Chinese, Korean and Japanese 24 hours a day
050-3816-2787
+81-50-3816-2787 (from overseas) - 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