As the number of people infected with the novel coronavirus has increased, the focus of attention has been on how to deal with people with no symptoms or mild symptoms. To reduce the burden on medical workers on the front line, measures in accordance with the situation must be considered.
An advisory panel of the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry will begin discussions to review the legal status of the coronavirus. This is because an increase in the number of people with no symptoms or mild symptoms is placing a heavy burden on the functions of medical institutions and public health centers.
In February, the government added the coronavirus to a list of designated infectious diseases that could seriously affect people's health. The coronavirus is designated as an infectious disease equivalent to those in Category II in the five-level classification system under the Infectious Diseases Control Law, the same level as tuberculosis and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS).
Later, to prevent infections, the government implemented the same level of measures as for Category I infectious diseases with the highest risk, including hospitalization even of people with no symptoms. Since the infectivity and pathogenicity were not clear, it is understandable that the government took such strong measures.
It was also assumed that infected people would refuse to be hospitalized or would not cooperate in investigating the route of infections. By providing legal backing, it has become possible to recommend hospitalization, which in turn has led to the steady investigation of infection routes.
The medical costs are covered by public funds, reducing the burden on patients. Considering these circumstances, the addition of the coronavirus to a list of designated infectious diseases can be said to be significant.
However, there are many medical personnel who are concerned that treatment for patients with serious symptoms will be neglected as workers are busy dealing with those with mild symptoms as a result of hospitalization being considered almost the standard.
Currently, people with mild symptoms or no symptoms can be treated at home or at a hotel, but it is said that some infected people want to be hospitalized just in case. If influenza, which is difficult to distinguish from the coronavirus in terms of symptoms, becomes prevalent, it is feared that confusion among medical workers on the front line could intensify.
As to designated infectious diseases, the government is supposed to be aware of and have control of all infected people. At a time when many people have no symptoms, it is worth considering reviewing the initial strict application of the system. It is hoped that new ways of applying the system in accordance with the situation of infections will be looked for, such as hospitalization mainly for people with serious symptoms.
However, there is no point in revising the strict application of the system if prevention of the spread of the virus is neglected. First of all, it is necessary to expand polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing to confirm whether people are infected with the virus. If the public can have a sense of safety, economic activities will also gain momentum.
In future discussions, it is important to clarify the effects and challenges of the review of the legal status of the coronavirus and carefully explain them to the public.
Even if the number of people infected with the coronavirus further increases, it is important to make efforts so as not to obstruct saving the lives of people in critical condition. To this end, it is essential to establish a system to effectively utilize the limited number of hospital beds and prevent the exhaustion of medical workers.
-- The original Japanese article appeared in The Yomiuri Shimbun on Aug. 28, 2020.
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