Medical facilities across Japan are struggling to cope with the recent surge in novel coronavirus infections, leaving the medical care system in many areas on the brink of collapse.
With the third wave of COVID-19 cases showing no sign of abating, some hospitals have already been forced to turn patients away or postpone stays, while others are hoping the state of emergency declared Thursday for Tokyo and its neighboring prefectures will reduce numbers in time for them to avoid similar measures.
The monthlong emergency was declared by Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga the same day the capital logged a record 2,447 daily cases. Many other parts of Japan are also continuing to report record infections.