Japan’s health minister says coronavirus patients who are at risk of becoming seriously ill will be admitted to hospital on the recommendation of a doctor.
Tamura Norihisa was asked about the government’s controversial new policy to restrict hospitalization to those who have developed serious symptoms or who are at risk of doing so at a Diet committee on Thursday.
Tamura said patients with medium-level symptoms, in principle, will be admitted to hospital for treatment.
He explained that those who are considered to be at low risk of becoming seriously ill will be asked to recuperate at home. But he said they will be hospitalized if doctors consider them to be at high risk of rapidly developing severe symptoms.
Tamura said what must be avoided at all costs is a situation where patients cannot be accepted by a hospital when they take a sudden turn for the worse.
He said in order to treat such patients, a certain number of beds must be kept available. The health minister asked for understanding of the government’s new policy.
Tamura also said as infections surge, there will be more people recuperating at home, but the number of healthcare staff is limited, even in Tokyo.
He said the government is desperately trying to work out how people’s lives can be protected with limited resources.
Tamura stressed the need to curb the number of new infections.
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