The government is leaning toward a proposal to extend the ongoing state of emergency in Tokyo and eight prefectures to June 20.
This would bring the nine areas in line with Okinawa Prefecture. Tokyo and the eight prefectures, including Osaka, had been scheduled to conclude their state of emergency at the end of this month.
The government plans to hear the opinions of experts and make a formal decision by the end of this week.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato said at a press conference on Monday that the government would discuss the possibility of extending the declaration, based on a comprehensive examination of the infection situation, the state of the medical system, and the flow of people.
As to how long the state of emergency would be extended, Kato suggested that the nine areas whose state of emergency is currently scheduled to end May 31 might be combined with Okinawa, whose end date is June 20.
The decision to set the deadline at June 20 is partly based on the assumption that a certain period of time is needed to control the pandemic. The number of newly infected people continues to rise in Hokkaido and other areas due to highly infectious mutations of the virus, and there has not been sufficient improvement in the medical system even in areas where infections are declining.
In consideration of the impact on the economy, however, there is also a proposal to set the end date at June 13. After carefully assessing the infection situation, the government will convene a subcommittee of experts to make a final decision by the end of the week.
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