Here are the latest COVID-19 updates from Japan and beyond:
As of 11 p.m., Friday, Sept. 10
- Toyota Motor Corp. on Friday slashed its global production outlook for the current fiscal year through March by about 300,000 units from its initial plan to around 9 million vehicles due to the spread of COVID-19 and a semiconductor crunch.
- Japan's main opposition party on Friday released a set of emergency proposals for a coronavirus response covering cash handouts, as the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's election for picking a new leader is set to take place later this month.
- A Japanese health ministry panel said Friday it does not currently have enough information to determine whether there is a causal link between the deaths of three men and their inoculations using batches of Moderna Inc. COVID-19 vaccine doses that were later withdrawn from use over contamination fears.
- U.S. President Joe Biden on Thursday announced sweeping coronavirus vaccination requirements that would cover two-thirds of all workers in the country, including a plan targeting businesses with more than 100 employees.
- Japan has confirmed 18 cases of the Eta variant of the coronavirus, a health ministry tally showed Thursday, the first such infections reported in the country.
- The European Union said Thursday it has reinstated a travel ban from Japan following recent surges of novel coronavirus infections with the highly contagious Delta variant.
- Taro Kono, the minister in charge of Japan's vaccination efforts, is set Friday to announce his bid to succeed Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga as leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, people familiar with his thinking said.
As of 11 p.m., Thursday, Sept. 9
- The Japan Football Association said Thursday it has relinquished its right to host the 2021 FIFA Club World Cup following discussions with world football's governing body, amid the continuing coronavirus pandemic.
- Japan Airlines Co. will raise some 300 billion yen ($2.7 billion) in capital later this month to strengthen its financial standing as air travel demand remains weak amid the coronavirus pandemic, sources close to the matter said Thursday.
- The Japanese government decided Thursday to extend the COVID-19 state of emergency again for Tokyo and many other areas as hospitals remain stretched despite a falling number of infections, while seeking a road map for easing restrictions when most of the population is vaccinated.
- World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Wednesday urged some advanced countries to suspend their ongoing or planned administration of third shots against the novel coronavirus until at least the end of the year to ensure vaccine supplies for developing countries.
Japan and beyond: Week in Photos - September 4~10
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