Japan's Prime Minister Abe Shinzo and the main governing Liberal Democratic Party have agreed to give roughly 2,800 dollars to households whose income has fallen to a certain level due to the coronavirus outbreak.
Abe and LDP policy chief Kishida Fumio agreed on the 300,000-yen cash handout on Friday as part of discussions on an emergency economic package.
Tokyo Governor Koike Yuriko has outlined the steps the city's government would take if the prime minister declares a state of emergency over the coronavirus outbreak.
Koike said in a briefing on Friday that she will likely ask residents to stay at home, and request public facilities and event organizers to suspend the use of venues. She said specific requests would be decided after the central government issues relevant guidelines.
Japan's health minister says local governments should consider asking people with mild symptoms of the coronavirus to self-isolate at their homes or in hotels.
Kato Katsunobu told reporters on Friday that the ministry will allow local governments to decide whether people with mild or no symptoms should be hospitalized. It wants to give priority to seriously ill patients in Tokyo and other areas where the number of cases is rapidly increasing.
Sources familiar with the Tokyo Metropolitan Government's health policy say officials are working to secure hotels for currently hospitalized coronavirus patients whose symptoms are mild.
The sources say doctors will be at the hotels to monitor patients. They add that patients will be hospitalized again if their symptoms worsen.
A survey in Japan found that nearly 80 percent of actors and voice actors who responded are facing hardship as their jobs have been canceled due to the coronavirus outbreak.
The Japan Actors Union conducted the survey over a period of three days through Thursday, and 528 actors and voice actors responded.
Japan further tightened its border entry restrictions on Friday in an effort to combat the coronavirus pandemic.
The government is calling on all arrivals from any part of the world to self-quarantine at home, hotels or elsewhere for two weeks. Travelers are asked to avoid using public transportation to get to those places. The measures will be in place through the end of this month.
Tokyo Metropolitan Government officials say 97 more people have been confirmed to be infected with the coronavirus in the capital. The figure reported on Thursday is a record high for daily cases in Tokyo.
The news came after the previous one-day record of 78 was reported on Tuesday.
The Japanese minister in charge of coronavirus measures says the government's emergency economic package will include measures to increase production of heart-lung machines.
Economic Revitalization Minister Nishimura Yasutoshi met on Thursday with Doctor Takeda Shinhiro, an expert on ECMO machines that replace the functions of the heart and lungs.
Japan's health ministry has decided to relax the rules for discharging coronavirus patients with mild symptoms from hospitals.
The government made the decision after its expert panel on Wednesday stressed the need to put priority on seriously ill patients. The health experts recommend that people who only have minor symptoms should self-isolate in their homes or hotels.
Data show younger generations account for a large portion of people confirmed to have the new coronavirus in Tokyo.
The pace of increase in coronavirus cases has risen in Japan's capital in recent days. Infections were confirmed among 41 people on March 25. The daily figure has since shown ups and downs, hitting 78 on Tuesday and 66 on Wednesday.
Japan's government has decided to ask all travelers entering the country to self-quarantine for two weeks, due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The government made the decision at a coronavirus taskforce meeting on Wednesday.
Officials in Yamanashi Prefecture, near Tokyo, say a baby girl less than a year old has tested positive for the new coronavirus.
The baby, who was admitted to the University of Yamanashi Hospital on Tuesday, is currently in intensive care with symptoms of severe pneumonia.
Prime Minister Abe Shinzo says Japan has yet to reach a point where a declaration of a state of emergency is necessary to contain the coronavirus pandemic.
Abe spoke at an Upper House committee meeting on Wednesday about a recently revised law that would allow him to declare a state of emergency to fight the pandemic. He said he will decide whether to issue such a declaration by putting priority on protecting the lives and health of the public.
Education authorities in Tokyo are thinking about keeping metropolitan high schools closed until early May to deal with the surge in the number of coronavirus infections in the capital.
Schools were temporarily closed in March, in line with Prime Minister Abe Shinzo's request for shutdowns through spring break to contain the coronavirus.