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On September 9, 2021, the Prime Minister held the 76th meeting of the Novel Coronavirus Response Headquarters at the Prime Minister’s Office.

At the meeting, the participants discussed the response to the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

Following the discussion, the Prime Minister said,

 “In locations all around the country, the number of new infections is finally following a decreasing trend, but the number of severely ill patients remains at a high level. Under these circumstances, we have decided to lift the declaration of a state of emergency in Miyagi and Okayama Prefectures on September 12 and extend it in other 19 prefectures to remain in effect until the end of September. We also decided to end priority measures to prevent the spread of disease as of September 12 in Toyama, Yamanashi, Ehime, Kochi, Saga, and Nagasaki Prefectures while engage in these measures until the end of September in other six prefectures, including newly added Miyagi and Okayama Prefectures. We will continue to implement measures to counter the spread of infections, such as the shortening the hours of dining and drinking establishments and teleworking, in the areas where the declaration or priority measures are effective.

In order to overcome this crisis and pave the way for the restoration of our vibrant daily lives in which we can feel at ease, we will first ensure our medical treatment structure is solidly in place and prevent symptoms from becoming severe through the use of pharmaceutical treatments and vaccines. In addition to hospital beds and hotels, we will increase the number of oxygen administration stations, temporary medical facilities, among others, around the country. For those recuperating at home, we will put a system in place so that a familiar medical practitioner will observe their health and make judgements on the need to be hospitalized so that these patients receive the medical treatment they require. New antibody neutralizing drugs have already been used by more than 20,000 patients and have been delivering remarkable results. In order to reduce further the number of patients who develop severe symptoms, we are now preparing a system in which all patients requiring this drug will be able to receive it. As for vaccinations, we are making headway with inoculations at a faster pace than European nations or the United States. Patients with severe symptoms and deaths have become extremely small in number, despite the expansion of infections caused by the Delta strain.

We are on schedule to complete the administration of vaccines to all those wishing to receive one sometime in October or early November. In heading towards that goal, we will make use of vaccination certificates and certificates of negative screening results to relax restrictions. Through this certificate system and other means, we will forge a path forward towards bringing our socioeconomic activities, including dining out, attending events, and going on trips, back to normal.

I ask all the ministers to continue to do everything in their power to protect the lives and livelihoods of the people.”