Science and Medicine

COVID-19 pandemic in Japan

The COVID-19 pandemic in Japan resulted in 33,803,572 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 74,694 deaths, along with 33,728,878 recoveries. The Japanese government confirmed the country's first case of the disease on 16 January 2020 in a resident of Kanagawa Prefecture who had returned from Wuhan, China. The first known death from COVID-19 was recorded in Japan on 14 February 2020. Both were followed by a second outbreak introduced by travellers and returnees from Europe and the United States between 11 March 2020 and 23 March 2020. According to the National Institute of Infectious Diseases, the majority of viruses spreading in the country derive from the European type, while those of the Wuhan type began disappearing in March 2020. According to the official press release of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, at the end of 2020, the cumulative number of cases was 230,304 and the number of deaths was 3,414. The COVID-19 vaccination in Japan began on 17 February 2021, more than a month after the first anniversary of the beginning of the pandemic in the country was commemorated. As of 22 October 2021, about 96.4 million people in Japan received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, while about 86.9 million were fully vaccinated. The Japanese government adopted various measures to limit or prevent the outbreak. Some observers describe this approach as constituting a unique "Japan Model" of COVID-19 response. On 30 January 2020, former prime minister Shinzo Abe established the Japan Anti-Coronavirus National Task Force to oversee the government's response to the pandemic. On 27 February 2020, he requested the temporary closure of all Japanese elementary, junior high, and high schools until early April 2020. On 7 April 2020, Abe proclaimed a one-month state of emergency for Tokyo and the prefectures of Kanagawa, Saitama, Chiba, Osaka, Hyogo, and Fukuoka. On 16 April 2020, the declaration was extended to the rest of the country for an indefinite period. The state of emergency was lifted in an increasing number of prefectures during May 2020, extending to the whole country by 25 May 2020. On 7 January 2021, Suga declared a state of emergency for Tokyo and the prefectures of Chiba, Saitama and Kanagawa, effective from 8 January until 7 February.

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See also

• ▸Cocaine
• ▸GER Classes S46, D56 and H88
• ▸HIV/AIDS in Russia

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