Here are the latest COVID-19 updates from Japan and beyond:
Japanese Crown Prince Fumihito (C) and Crown Princess Kiko (L) attend a memorial ceremony in Tokyo for the 1923 Great Kanto Earthquake victims on Sept. 1, 2022, the 99th anniversary of the massive disaster that left over 100,000 people dead or unaccounted for in Tokyo and surrounding areas. (Pool photo) (Kyodo) ==Kyodo
<Sept. 2, 2022>
- The Japanese government decided Friday to introduce penalties for major hospitals that fail to provide outpatient care and prepare beds for patients with COVID-19 and other infectious diseases against prearrangements with local governments.
<Sept. 1, 2022>
- The government held an annual disaster drill Thursday, though again scaling it back to prevent the spread of COVID-19, based on the scenario that a massive earthquake originating off Japan's Pacific coast had affected wide areas.
- Pretax profits among nonfinancial Japanese companies jumped 17.6 percent from a year earlier to a record 28.32 trillion yen ($203 billion) in the April-June quarter, government data showed Thursday, boosted by a weak yen and the waning impact of the COVID-19 pandemic despite surging commodity prices.
<Aug. 31, 2022>
- U.S. drug regulators on Wednesday approved two updated formulations of COVID-19 vaccines as booster shots intended to provide increased protection against the currently circulating Omicron variant.
- Japan will raise its daily entry cap on arrivals to 50,000 from the current 20,000 from Sept. 7 in a further easing of strict COVID-19 border controls, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Wednesday.
<Aug. 30, 2022>
- The government may start inoculating the public specifically against the Omicron variant of the coronavirus by the end of September, rather than mid-October as originally planned, government sources said Tuesday.
<Aug. 29, 2022>
- Japan's daily coronavirus tally totaled 95,916 cases on Monday, falling below 100,000 for the first time in six weeks.
<Aug. 27, 2022>
- Japan is considering allowing asymptomatic COVID-19 patients to leave their homes to buy daily necessities as long as they wear a mask and take other measures against spreading the virus, government sources said Saturday.
- Japan is considering simplifying the way it deals with the coronavirus, sources close to the matter said Friday, potentially taking a step toward downgrading the virus and treating it like the seasonal flu.
- U.S. biotechnology firm Moderna Inc. said Friday it is filing patent infringement lawsuits over a COVID-19 vaccine developed by U.S. pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc. and its German partner BioNTech SE, alleging a key technology was copied.
<Aug. 24, 2022>
- Japan will no longer require incoming travelers to show a pre-departure negative COVID-19 test result starting on Sept. 7, provided they have been vaccinated three times, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Wednesday.
- Japan will change its daily coronavirus reporting rules by limiting it to the elderly and others at risk of developing severe symptoms in a bid to lessen the burden on hospitals as the seventh wave of the pandemic persists, government sources said Wednesday.
Japan and beyond: Week in Photos - Aug. 20~26
Useful resources for foreign residents and visitors in Japan
- Health ministry call center
COVID-19: 0120-565-653 (toll free)
COVID-19 Vaccines: 0120-761-770 (toll free)
-Interpreters available for English, Chinese, Korean, Portuguese and Spanish 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.; for Thai 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.; for Vietnamese 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. - Health ministry's COVID-19 Vaccine Navigation website
https://v-sys.mhlw.go.jp/en/ - 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)
