With new coronavirus infections leveling off and the Golden Week holiday starting Friday, more health experts in Japan are suggesting that it’s OK for people to remove masks in certain outdoor settings, especially when social distancing is maintained.
Experts warn, however, that basic prevention measures — such as the ventilation of indoor spaces — will remain crucial as infection levels remain high in most of the country.
In the face of recent moves in other countries to withdraw mask mandates, top health experts serving on government committees have begun to suggest that Japan may loosen its guidance on the universal mask-wearing practice that was advocated when the pandemic began two years ago.
Economic revitalization minister Daishiro Yamagiwa, who is concurrently leading the government’s pandemic response, also hinted over the weekend that a gradual phasing out of mask-wearing could be in the cards as COVID-19 cases fall.
“I know it’s a huge national concern,” Shigeru Omi, the nation’s top coronavirus adviser, told reporters Wednesday about the growing debate on masks in Japan. “You reporters should be wearing masks right now (during an indoor news conference), but after your work is done and you take a stroll at night in Hibiya Park (in Tokyo), you can probably remove them.”
He added that it would be hard to find scientific evidence on the risks of going without masks outdoors, noting that the risk of infection varies by individual. “At some point, however, we would need to show the public clearer, evidence-based guidance on when masks can be removed.”
Takaji Wakita, head of the National Institute of Infectious Diseases and leader of a health ministry advisory panel on coronavirus measures, also told a Lower House committee on Wednesday that, under certain conditions, removing masks can be recommended in order to avoid the risk of heatstroke.
“From now on, the temperature and humidity levels are expected to rise,” he said. “When there’s enough distance between people outdoors, and when you're not having a conversation, it’s recommended that you remove your mask.”
He cautioned, however, that disposable, nonwoven fabric masks — proven to be more effective against the virus than cloth or polyurethane masks — should be worn indoors and in crowded outdoor places. Wearing a nonwoven fabric mask properly, with no space between them and the skin, as well as other prevention measures such as adequate ventilation and avoiding the "three C's” (close-contact settings, closed spaces and crowded places), are also strongly recommended, he said.
Unlike in many other countries, where mask-wearing has been a politically charged issue since the earliest days of the pandemic, an overwhelming portion of the public in Japan has complied with government requests to wear masks at school, on public transportation and in the workplace. Even outdoors, the sight of people without a mask is rare. Masks were a common sight in Japan long before the pandemic, with commuters and workers often wearing them during the hay fever and flu seasons.
Experts predict that infections will probably rise as people become more active through the first week of May, as this year’s Golden Week holidays are the first in three years without nationwide measures in place aimed at restricting people’s movement.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida asked citizens to take the following steps during the holiday: get booster shots of a coronavirus vaccine if they have not already; take PCR tests before traveling; and continue basic prevention measures such as avoiding the 3 C's.
“Before visiting your hometown or other travel plans, I urge you to get booster shots or get tested,” Kishida told a news conference on Tuesday. “You can get free tests nearby, and we will also beef up temporary free testing centers at major stations and airports during the holiday.”
Infection levels have fallen in Tokyo, Osaka and other big cities over the last few weeks, though gaps in infection trends are widening among regions, with cases rising in Okinawa and Hokkaido. Rural prefectures such as Iwate, Akita, Fukushima, Shimane, Miyazaki and Kagoshima have also seen seven-day average figures higher than the peaks recorded earlier this year.
It was revealed at Wednesday’s advisory board meeting was that 555 COVID-19 patients were reported to have died at home from January to March. Of those, 39% had received a second shot of a COVID-19 vaccine.
In recent months, omicron's BA.2 subvariant has quickly replaced BA.1 as the most dominant strain of the virus. BA.2 now accounts for about 90% of new coronavirus cases in the country.
As Japan ponders its own COVID-19 exit strategy, the government subcommittee headed by Omi came up with a draft proposal on future countermeasures against a rebound in infections after Golden Week.
The proposal includes four options — two that emphasize infection control at the expense of some social and economic activities, and two that place higher priority on the resumption of normal day-to-day life. The key goals remain the same: protecting the country's most vulnerable from the virus and making sure medical facilities are not overwhelmed by a sudden surge in patients.
While the subcommittee finalizes the details of their four-pronged approach, Omi said it would ultimately be up to the national and prefectural governments to decide which of the options they would utilize, or whether to blend more than one approach to best meet their needs.
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