The Upper House on Wednesday passed legislative measures that will introduce fines for people and businesses that do not comply with restrictions imposed to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus.
While the government had initially sought to impose jail sentences on COVID-19 sufferers who refused to be hospitalized, the plan was scrapped after talks between the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, which categorized such a step as excessive.
The legislation comes after some people fled hospitals or refused to be hospitalized, including a man who ran away from a medical facility during treatment for serious COVID-19 complications to visit a spa and his office, saying he was worried about his business.