According to Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s announcement on Friday, Japan would explore reducing the status of the COVID-19 virus to the same category as seasonal influenza this spring.
Kishida stated that he had given instructions to officials working in the Health Ministry to discuss the move, adding that his administration would also review rules regarding face masks and other pandemic preparations.
“We will transition the different policies and actions to date in phases in order to further progress the efforts of ‘living with Corona’ and restore Japan to a state of normalcy,” Kishida said. “This will allow us to restore Japan to a state of normalcy.”
Even though the number of daily COVID-19 cases in Japan has been dropping over the past few weeks, the country is still dealing with over 100,000 new infections each day.
The Japan Ministry of Health and Welfare says that the COVID-19 virus is a Class 2 disease, which places it on par with tuberculosis and avian influenza in terms of its severity. Officials will now explore the possibility of reclassifying it as Class 5, which is the lowest possible ranking and includes the seasonal flu.
After more than two years of pandemic restrictions, Japan finally fully reopened its borders to visitors from other countries in October last year, bringing an end to one of the most stringent border controls in the world.
As per the website of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the United States, influenza, also known as the common flu, and COVID-19 are both contagious respiratory illnesses that have similar symptoms. However, influenza and COVID-19 are caused by different viruses, and testing is required to confirm a diagnosis of either illness.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report that the majority of people have a much lower chance of passing away or being hospitalized as a result of the COVID-19 virus as a direct result of the high vaccination rates and the population’s protection from prior infections.
However, the World Health Organization (WHO) continues to classify the outbreak of the coronavirus as a pandemic. In its most recent update, the WHO reaffirmed its recommendation that people wear masks after having recent exposure to or close contact with COVID-19. The WHO also recommended that “anyone in a crowded, enclosed, or poorly ventilated space” do the same.
Last week, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, who is the director-general of the WHO, issued a plea to governments throughout the world, urging them to continue sharing the sequencing data of the coronavirus. This is because it is still essential to identify and track the appearance and spread of new variations.
“It is natural that countries will not be able to continue testing and sequencing at the same levels they did during the Omicron peak.” At the same time, it is impossible for everyone in the globe to shut their eyes and hope that the virus will go away. “No, it won’t,” was his response.