The number of COVID-19 cases in Japan has reached 19,825 total, including 977 deaths, as of July 5, according to the Japan Ministry of Health (computer translated).

In Tokyo, the case tally is up to 6,867 after seeing more than 100 cases for a fifth straight day, reporting numbers not seen since early May.

Image by Sofia Terzoni from Pixabay

Gov. Yuriko Koike was recently reelected Tokyo governor in large part due to response to the coronavirus pandemic in the Japanese capital. “Our urgent task, above everything else, is coronavirus responses,” Koike said.

“This is a critical time to prepare ourselves for the second wave,” said Koike, the first female governor of Tokyo.

Despite the capital seeing high numbers of new infections in recent days, Koike said on Sunday  that she was not considering requesting blanket business closures. She will focus on specific areas and business sectors where infections are concentrated to take appropriate measures.

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Infections are growing among younger people in their 20s and 30s, and many of them are being traced to host and hostess bars and other nightlife destinations in the Kabukicho district of Shinjuku Ward and the Ikebukuro area of Toshima Ward.

In related news, Japanese officials will start discussions on deciding priority groups for when vaccines are made available to the public. The government plans to give priority to health care workers. It will also mull giving high priority to elderly people and those with underlying conditions, who are at the highest risk of developing severe cases of COVID-19.

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