The government is preparing to lift the state of emergency for six prefectures, including Osaka, Kyoto and Hyogo, as early as the end of this month, sources said Wednesday.
A state of emergency was declared for Tokyo and nine other prefectures due to resurging coronavirus infections.
The government is likely to make an official decision Friday about the early lifting of the declaration for the six prefectures, which also include Aichi, Gifu and Fukuoka. The government plans to maintain the state of emergency for the remaining four prefectures in the Tokyo metropolitan area until the scheduled end date of March 7.
Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga on Wednesday discussed the move with Health, Labor and Welfare Minister Norihisa Tamura, Yasutoshi Nishimura, the minister in charge of economic revitalization and measures against the novel coronavirus, and other relevant ministers.
"Thanks to efforts, the number of infections has significantly dropped. Given the situation, I've received requests from some governors [to lift the state of emergency early]," Suga told reporters after the meeting. "I want to make a decision after hearing the opinions from the advisory committee on basic response measures on Friday."
On Tuesday, four prefectures -- Osaka, Kyoto, Hyogo and Aichi -- asked the central government to lift the state of emergency at the end of February. Fukuoka Prefecture followed suit on Wednesday. Although Gifu Prefecture has not made such a request, the central government intends to make the same decision regarding the prefecture as neighboring Aichi.
The central government intends to respect the views of the governors as much as possible, and also believes the infection situation in the six prefectures has improved to a level at which the state of emergency can be lifted.
A health ministry advisory panel, which considers measures against COVID-19, reported Wednesday its view that the burden on the health care system appears to have been reduced in the six prefectures.
On Friday, the central government plans to ask the advisory committee on basic response measures, which comprises experts, about whether to lift the state of emergency in the six prefectures earlier than planned. The government's task force is likely to decide officially on the matter later the same day.
However, some government officials have been cautious about the early lifting for Fukuoka Prefecture, saying no significant improvement has been seen in the hospital bed occupancy rate in the prefecture.
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