a new wave of coronavirus The infection is spreading rapidly in Asia, prompting residents from New Zealand to Japan to take precautions to slow the outbreak and help prevent overwhelming health systems.
The renewed surge in cases, mostly BA.4/5 Omicron variants, provides another challenge for officials grappling with the economic fallout of previous waves of the pandemic while trying to avoid extending or restarting unpopular restrictions .
The New Zealand government on Thursday announced free masks and rapid antigen tests as it tries to relieve pressure on the country’s health system, which is dealing with an influx of both COVID and influenza patients during the southern hemisphere winter.
“There is no question that the combination of the spike in Covid-19 cases and hospitals, the worst flu season in recent memory and the absence of concerned staff is putting health workers and the entire health system under immense pressure,” said Ayesha Veral, COVID-19 Minister Response, said in a statement.
New Zealand, which has a population of 5.1 million, is currently infected with the virus about 69,000. Of these, 765 cases are in hospital, due to which the waiting time has increased and surgeries have been cancelled.
In Japan, new COVID-19 cases have risen to levels not seen since the beginning of this year. The government has called on people to be especially careful ahead of the upcoming long weekend and the impending summer school holidays.
Japan reported nearly 95,000 cases on Wednesday and a 2.14-fold increase in newly infected patients compared to the previous week, according to a government spokesman.
“The number of new cases is increasing in every prefecture in Japan, and it is spreading rapidly,” Health Minister Shigeyuki Goto said at the start of a committee meeting to tackle the coronavirus.
Tokyo raised its alert level to the highest level. “Tomorrow, we will hold a task force meeting to decide on measures to be taken this summer, taking into account the national trend and the opinion of experts,” Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike told a meeting.
Like New Zealand, South Korea was praised for its early response to the pandemic, but as of Wednesday, daily cases had tripled in a week to more than 39,000.
Officials and experts expect South Korea’s new daily cases to reach 200,000 by mid-August through the end of September and are expanding vaccination to booster shots, but are not planning renewed restrictions.
Australia warned that it could be hit by its worst Covid-19 outbreak in the next few weeks as fueled by BA.4/5 Omicron variants. Officials said “millions” of new infections could be expected, but ruled out any strict restrictions to contain the spread.
“We’ve moved on from that … we’re not in an era of lockdowns and things like that,” federal health minister Mark Butler told radio station 2GB on Thursday, even as he returned from Australia. Urged to consider working from home.
Australian hospital admissions are already hovering near levels seen in the last major omicron outbreak earlier this year, with its health system also under pressure from high COVID and influenza numbers.
While cases have decreased in Thailand, infections have increased in Indonesia, reaching the highest level since March.
New infections and hospitalizations are low in the Philippines, but the government has warned that the number of cases could increase by at least 20 times by the end of the month.
Manila is urging more people to get their booster shots as health ministry data shows only a quarter of eligible adults have received their first booster as of July 12.
Mainland China reported an average of more than 300 locally transmitted COVID daily infections in July, up from nearly 70 in June, as Beijing’s strict “dynamic COVID-zero” policy helps keep local clusters in check. and prevented any overwhelming number of hospitals.
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