Jan 26 (Japan Times) - The rapid rise in omicron cases has prompted moves to concentrate medical resources on severely ill patients, amid worries that the health care system will once again be put under dire strain.
The development comes on top of the expected expansion of quasi-emergency measures to 18 more prefectures.
As some hospitals are starting to become overwhelmed with COVID-19 cases, the government has decided that younger, low-risk patients can start isolating without a doctor’s diagnosis, so that those who have higher risk of developing severe symptoms will get necessary medical attention.
It is a major change from the previous policy, in which all patients basically had to go to the doctor to be registered as a COVID-19 patient. Doctors would diagnose them as a coronavirus patient and report the case to the government, while public health center officials would keep tabs on them during their recuperation at home. But with the revision, patients themselves will contact their local public health center.
The health ministry notified municipalities of the change late on Monday, giving them the option of adopting the new policy if hospitals start to get overwhelmed.
For instance, if a patient under the age of 40 has been vaccinated twice, does not have an underlying illness and tests positive for COVID-19 with an antigen test, they can simply notify the public health center and isolate without going to the doctor, it said.
If a close contact of a COVID-19 patient. such as a family member, starts to develop symptoms like a fever, doctors can diagnose them as having been infected with the virus without the need for a PCR test. Until now, close contacts had to test positive before being given the diagnosis.
