The Japanese government plans to keep a coronavirus state of emergency in place for Tokyo, Osaka, and eight other prefectures in light of high bed occupancy rates at hospitals.

The government decided last week to extend the state of emergency for the 10 prefectures until March 7. Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide said he was prepared to end it sooner if circumstances improved.

The health ministry's panel of experts on the coronavirus looked into the situations in the 10 prefectures on Thursday. Panel member Okabe Nobuhiko then briefed Prime Minister Suga.

Okabe later told reporters that he had briefed Suga on what was discussed at the meeting, including the downward trend in new cases and the ongoing strain on medical resources. He said Suga appeared delighted that the situation is improving. But he said Suga is worried about people becoming complacent.

Okabe said the situation has not reached a point where there is no need for concern about the healthcare system. He said numbers of people being hospitalized are dropping but that numbers being discharged have not increased very much. He said he worries that the situation might take another turn for the worse.