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The average number of coronavirus patients among designated hospitals across Japan has been rising for 11 consecutive weeks, health ministry data showed Friday, with experts warning the country has entered its 10th COVID-19 wave.
One in four people in Japan have said in a survey they will continue to wear face masks in all social settings, even after COVID-19 guidelines on face coverings are eased on March 13, citing reasons such as infection prevention and habituation.
Japan will ask foreign guests attending the state funeral for former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe next week to wear protective face masks to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus, the top government spokesman says.
More than a month has passed since the Japanese government relaxed its guidance on mask usage to reflect subsiding fears of the coronavirus, yet its call for removing masks whenever possible has not caught on widely among the public.
When the coronavirus pandemic began over two years ago, people in Japan quickly donned masks en masse with little complaint. But now the government has relaxed its guidance on outdoor mask usage, the message appears not to be filtering through.