The Japanese government plans to ask the business sector to substantially increase production of medical equipment, such as ventilators, in preparation for a further spread of the novel coronavirus, Jiji Press learned Saturday.

Industry minister Hiroshi Kajiyama will meet with business leaders, including Hiroaki Nakanishi, chairman of the Japan Business Federation, or Keidanren, on Tuesday to seek their cooperation, informed sources said.

In Tokyo and other areas seeing a spike in the number of coronavirus cases, concerns are mounting over the collapse of the medical system, a situation in which medical institutions are unable to treat severely ill patients due to a shortage of equipment or other reasons.

Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike and others have requested the government of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to declare a state of emergency over the coronavirus pandemic under law.

The government plans to include support measures for boosting production of ventilators and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, or ECMO, devices in its emergency economic stimulus package, to be compiled on Tuesday.

In line with the move, Kajiyama will ask the business sector to increase production and imports of such equipment, the sources said. The country, which has secured over 8,000 ventilators so far, aims to procure more, bracing for the possibility of the situation getting worse across the nation.

He will also call for an increase in production of protective suits, items used in the treatment of coronavirus patients and alcohol disinfectants, the sources said.

The minister is seen explaining to the business leaders that people who will work for the production increase will be exempted from a stay-at-home request that would be made in the event a state of emergency declaration is issued, according to the sources.

The government sought a boost in face mask production in February.

The governments of the United States and European countries have instructed automakers and heavy machinery makers to start producing or increase production of ventilators and other medical equipment following heightened concerns over a shortage of such devices in the wake of surges in coronavirus infection cases.

JIJI Press