Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has decided to expand the state of emergency currently effective for selected prefectures to the entire nation in an attempt to prevent the new coronavirus from spreading further and straining the country’s health care system, a government official said Thursday.
Concluding that a mass infection occurred at the facility, the Hiroshima government conducted virus tests on people related to the facility.
A total of 18 people were newly confirmed to be infected, including 11 residents and 7 staff at the facility for intellectually disabled people, “Mishin Gakuen,” located in Saeki Ward, Hiroshima City.
With the spread of the new coronavirus infection, due to the lack of ventilators, a debate about who should give priority has started in Japan.
At two facilities for the disabled, operated by a social welfare corporation in Tokorozawa City, a total of 10 staff members and users were found to be infected, and the prefecture was examined as a cluster.
Professor Shinya Tateiwa of Ritsumeikan University, issued a statement in light of the spread of the new coronavirus, “so as not to neglect the lives of people with disabilities,” calling upon healthcare professionals. Amid concerns over the the healthcare delivery system, such as the lack of beds and respirators to accommodate patients, Tateiwa expressed a sense of crisis as his life could be selected.
Shigeo Hoshino, the manager of Akebono-no-en, said: “The country attaches great importance to refraining from going out and refraining from contact with people. I’m afraid of the spread of the infection because of the nature of the facility, which means that people live in groups. “
In response to the emergency declaration, the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare has announced a response policy for facilities for the disabled.
People in the Tokyo metropolitan area — Tokyo, Chiba, Kanagawa and Saitama — as well as in Osaka, Hyogo and Fukuoka, will be requested to refrain from unnecessary outings. Grocery shopping, visits to hospital, and commuting are excluded.
Sawako Naito, who has multiple sclerosis, periodically takes medication for the disease. She began displaying symptoms while studying at the University of Tokyo and has published a book about her experience.
Barrier Free Japan