Tokyo: Japan is set to downgrade its classification of COVID-19 to that of a less serious disease on May 8, revising its measures against the coronavirus such as relaxing guidance that people wear masks in public indoor places, NHK public broadcaster said.
A classification downgrade to disease category five from the current category two would end an isolation requirement for infected people and their close contacts. In a separate measure foreshadowed by Kishida, the government would also advise only patients with symptoms to wear masks in indoor public places, whereas currently it urges everyone to do so.
The government last revised coronavirus measures in May. It said then that people no longer had to wear masks when outside as long as appropriate social distance was maintained. Even so, the vast majority of people in Japan are still wearing masks in public, both outdoors and indoors.
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