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Tokyo Raises Virus Alert, Eyes Curbs if Hospitals Fill Up

Tokyo Raises Virus Alert, Eyes Curbs if Hospitals Fill Up

Tokyo raised its Covid alert to the second-highest of four levels Thursday as case numbers surged, with the omicron variant quickly taking over as the dominant type of infection. 

Daily cases in the Japanese capital reached 3,124, the highest level since September. The daily tally was just 641 a week earlier.  

Japan had until recently staved off the massive waves of infection seen in many other countries due to the highly transmissible omicron variant, but the situation is changing rapidly. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s government has placed three of the worst-hit areas under a quasi-emergency, allowing local authorities to place restrictions on businesses like bars and restaurants.  

Tokyo will seek similar measures if its hospital bed occupancy rate reaches 20%, compared with a level of 13.7% on Wednesday, according to a report by public broadcaster NHK. Governor Yuriko Koike would consider asking the government to declare a state of emergency if the rate reaches 50%, according to a separate report by Kyodo. 

Stocks fell Thursday as the infection surge hurt investor sentiment, particularly in the travel sector. Japan has yet to make much progress on booster shots for its population, with less than 1% of the population having received a third vaccine shot. While Kishida has vowed to speed up the rollout, the bulk of the population still has months to wait. 

The Japanese capital also stepped up its alert level over the healthcare situation by one notch to the second-lowest level on Thursday. The government decided to scrap quarantine for medical workers who have been identified as close contacts of omicron cases, as the health care system in the southern prefecture of Okinawa, the site of one of the nation’s biggest outbreaks, came under severe pressure. 

©2022 Bloomberg L.P.