TOKYO: A recent surge in new cases of novel coronavirus infection across Japan has been raising concerns about a possible collapse of the medical system in the country.

The occupancy rate for hospital beds for COVID-19 patients is rising in prefectures including Hokkaido, northernmost Japan, and Osaka, western Japan.

The number of newly confirmed COVID-19 cases across the country totaled 6,674 in the week through Monday, up from 4,902 in the preceding week, according to a health ministry advisory board.

In October, the Japanese government revised an ordinance to limit coronavirus patients who can be hospitalized to people with severe symptoms and underlying conditions, and those aged 65 or over.

As of Nov. 4, the number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients stood at 3,592 across the nation, up by 471 from a week before, with the hospital bed occupancy rate rising 1.8 percentage points to 13.4 percent.

By prefecture, the number of hospitalized coronavirus patients came to 215 in Hokkaido as of Nov. 4, up by 64, 148 in Aichi, central Japan, up by 50, and 366 in Osaka, up by 100. The bed occupancy rate stood at 11.9 percent in Hokkaido, 17.2 percent in Aichi and 26.6 percent in Osaka.

An occupancy rate of 25 percent or over meets a condition for Stage 3, the second-worst level on the four-stage system to assess the seriousness of the spread of the coronavirus.

Besides Osaka, Tokyo and the southernmost prefecture of Okinawa had a rate exceeding the threshold, at 26.1 percent and 43.1 percent, respectively.

“The number of hospitalized patients and that of people with severe symptoms started rising in late October,” the advisory board said.

“There will be a need to implement strong measures that could restrict economic and social activities to a certain extent” if hospital bed occupancy rates remain high after steps, including those to prevent the occurrence of infection clusters, are taken, it said.

JIJI Press