Tokyo Mulling New Criteria For Issuing Alerts
Officials in Tokyo are working on preventive measures to prepare for another possible surge of coronavirus infections. They've set up a team of experts amid a recent daily spike in confirmed cases.
Monday saw 48 new cases in the capital including 20 linked to a downtown nightclub district. It's the 2nd day in a row with more than 40 positive results.
The increase comes after the metropolitan government on Friday canceled most of its requests for businesses to restrict operating hours.
The team of experts is looking at how to enhance testing and medical systems, as well as how to monitor infections to prepare for another surge in infections.
At the closed-door session on Monday, they reportedly discussed whether to exclude cluster infections at hospitals or cases confirmed by intensive testing in assessing if community infections are spreading.
They also debated the merits of evaluating specific areas, rather than the entire prefecture, in light of the fact that a significant number of recent cases are nightclub employees in central Tokyo.
The experts plan to decide by the end of this month what new criteria the metropolitan government will use when issuing alerts urging people to exercise more caution.
