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State of Emergency Lifted for All Prefectures

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State of Emergency Lifted for All Prefectures

On May 25, the Japanese government finally lifted the State of Emergency alert for Tokyo, Saitama, Chiba, Kanagawa and Hokkaido, bringing the entire country out of emergency. Prime Minister Abe Shinzo said the nation managed to bring the outbreak under control within just one and a half months.

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But he added the state of emergency may need to be re-issued if the number of infections shoots up again. Abe also said that he will enact an additional 130 trillion yen supplementary budget to cushion the economy from the impact of the pandemic. A panel of government novel coronavirus experts says the emergency measures were no longer necessary. But the situations in Tokyo, neighboring Kanagawa, and the northern prefecture of Hokkaido need to be monitored and analyzed going forward. They also warn to prepare for a second wave of infections.

A revised policy obtained by Nippon TV says the infection status in those areas will need to be reevaluated every three weeks. The government will be compiling a roadmap for resuming social and economic activities. These include a step-by-step process of easing restrictions on going out and holding events.