Japan limits hospitalisation of Covid-19 patients to most serious as cases surge

Japan will shift policy to focus on hospitalising patients who are seriously ill with Covid-19 and those at risk of becoming so, officials said, to avoid strain on the medical system as cases surge in Olympics host city Tokyo and elsewhere.

The country has seen a sharp increase in coronavirus cases, and is recording more than 10,000 daily new infections nationwide. Tokyo had a record high of 4,058 on Saturday (July 31), exceeding 4,000 for the first time.

“We will secure the necessary beds for severely ill patients and those at risk of becoming so,” Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said on Monday evening after a government task force meeting.

Agencies