The government said Friday it will boost the country’s medical capabilities in order to hospitalize 20% more COVID-19 patients compared with this summer’s fifth wave of infections, when many people were forced to recuperate at home.
In an outline of countermeasures presented at a panel meeting, the government of new Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said it will seek to increase the utilization rate of hospital beds secured for COVID-19 patients, in addition to designating more beds at public hospitals for exclusive use by sufferers of the respiratory disease.
"We will prepare for the next surge in infections by considering the worst-case scenario," Kishida said at the meeting. The government plans to present a more detailed response to the pandemic in November, he added.