The head of the National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Takaji Wakita, speaks to reporters at a news conference held on August 3 after an expert panel was held in Tokyo's Kasumigaseki district. Kai Ichino Experts warn that severe COVID 19 cases and deaths are rising in Japan amid the seventh wave, although the pace of new infection cases is slowing.
At a news conference on August 3, Takaji Wakita, head of the National Institute of Infectious Diseases, said at a news conference that the health ministry should be advised on how to combat the novel coronaviruses.
The panel showed that the daily average of new cases for the week ending August 2 was 1.16 times compared to the week before, according to a meeting that day. The rate of increase fell from a week earlier. The average week ending July 26 was 1.89 times compared to the week before that.
The deaths were nearly doubled from the previous week.
In some areas, new cases could have peaked. In some areas, cases have begun to decline, but it is increasing in most others, Wakita said at the news conference after the meeting.
The number of severely ill patients and deaths tend to increase later than the surge in new cases.
As of Aug. 3, there were 478 severely ill patients, up 167 from a week earlier.
The daily average of deaths resulting in death for the week ending August 2 was 110, or 1.9 times more than the average of 58 deaths in the previous week.
In the sixth wave, new cases peaked in early February, but cases resulting in death posted a record high of 327 about three weeks later, according to a tally compiled by The Asahi Shimbun.
Wakita said that the seventh wave has the same trend as the sixth wave. Many elderly people in poor physical condition seem to have died after contracting the novel coronaviruses. The occupancy rate of hospital beds is rising.
The Cabinet Secretariat said that the rate reached 50 percent or more in 29 prefectures, up from 18 prefectures the previous week.
More than 70 percent of hospital beds were filled in the six prefectures of Kanagawa, Shizuoka, Wakayama, Fukuoka, Kagoshima and Okinawa.
The country confirmed a record 249,830 new COVID 19 cases as of 8 p.m. on Aug. 3.
The figure exceeded the previous record set on July 28 by more than 16,800.
Daily records were set in 24 prefectures on the day.
On that day, there were 169 deaths nationwide.