Caution Still Needed 5 Years after Japan's 1st COVID-19 Case

Tokyo, Jan. 15 (Jiji Press)--As Japan marks the fifth anniversary of the confirmation of its first case of COVID-19 on Wednesday, people in the country are still being urged to exercise caution about the novel coronavirus disease.

Waves of infections have continued even after Japan lowered the classification of COVID-19 under the infectious disease law to Category V, the same as for seasonal influenza, in May 2023.

There have been reports of cases of prolonged COVID-19 aftereffects having impact on social life.

Japan's first COVID-19 case was confirmed on Jan. 15, 2020, prompting the government to classify the disease as the second most severe category under the law.

At that time, the government required COVID-19 patients to be hospitalized and restricted their work, while collecting information on all patients.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]