May 02, 2020 (NHK) - A government panel of experts in Japan says social restrictions should vary by region depending on the scale of local coronavirus infections.
A nationwide state of emergency is set to expire on May 6. The government is planning to extend it for about one month, and is seeking experts' views.
At a meeting on Friday, they said the declaration of an emergency and people's efforts are showing their effects.
They say the number of new infections in the country has declined from nearly 700 in early April to about 200 in recent days.
But they caution that the pace of decline is slow, and the results of efforts to cut person-to-person contact by 80 percent differ by region and age.
The experts also say the country's medical system remains strained due to the large number of patients on ventilators, and that a resurgence of the virus could overwhelm resources.
They suggested that social restrictions should be tailored to match conditions in each region.
The experts say areas where infections are spreading should maintain strict restrictions on public activities until the tally falls to a certain level.
But they add that a partial easing may be considered for social activities deemed important, provided that infection risks can be sufficiently reduced.
As for regions with limited numbers of new infections, the experts say guidelines could be eased somewhat.
They say the availability of quick diagnostic tests, the limited geographic spread of infections, and sufficient medical resources are key to such decisions.
The experts go on to say that people, regardless of region, need to adapt to a new normal in the long fight against the virus.
They say this means avoiding closed, crowded and close-contact settings as well as rigorous hand-washing and social distancing.
Large-scale events should be cancelled or postponed if the necessary infection-control measures are not in place. Risk-reductions would also be required for schools to reopen.
