Japan restricting hospital admissions amid surge in cases

The Japanese government has introduced a new policy that will require COVID-19 patients to stay at home instead of a hospital as cases surge in the country during the Olympic Games.

This policy aims to save hospital beds for patients with the most severe symptoms as cases in Tokyo have tripled since the Olympics began last month. On Wednesday, Tokyo reported a new all-time high of 4,166 cases, The Associated Press reports.

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga defended the new policy, stating that it only applies to areas where hospitals are severely strained. The Japanese parliament debated the new policy, with opposing lawmakers arguing that it put people isolating at home at risk without care.

“Lives that can be saved will be lost,” said opposition lawmaker Kazunori Yamanoi, who called the policy “abandonment.”

More than 14,000 people in Tokyo with mild symptoms are isolating at home, an increase of 10 times the number of people doing so last month, according to the AP. About 8,400 other people are waiting for beds at hospitals or special hotels.

“The pandemic has now entered a new phase,” Japanese Health Minister Norihisa Tamura said. “Hospital capacity is limited.”

Suga is expected to announce a milder version of this order for 13 prefectures, apart from the five that will currently be affected, the AP reports. The prime minister, who was criticized for insisting on hosting the Olympics, said there was no evidence connecting the current surge to the Games.