Tokyo reports 2,198 new virus cases; 1,711 in Osaka, 1,644 in Okinawa

Well and truly on the next wave!

Had a good sleep for three months, everyone? Nice. But now hurry up rolling out the booster campaign. Better start still today evening!

Stay safe everyone. A happy new year to all!

How is the 3rd shot planning going? It really easy amazing that they didn't learn anything from the debacle of last year.

If only the government had read the comments here, they would have come up with a perfect policy to prevent every single case.

this is from 18000 tests - I can't recall the amount of tests ever being this high - its double the usual amount (which is not saying much).

Restrictions on restaurants or bars wont work. Rather better focus on booster dose and also omicron does not have severe affects on hospitalizations or death.

Good thing Japan has a high vaccination rate and Omicron is a weaker variant. Cases will go up but unless people get very sick they will just stay home (as a normal cold/ flu).

South Africa's cases quickly peaked and are already retreating. UK has just started to decline and the US is a week or two away as well.

No reason to panic.

Will peak soon enough without hospitals being full and will notbe huge amount of deaths.

The risk of Omicron to your average person is so minimal as to be almost irrelevant. Most deaths from previous variants have been from those with multiple health issues and the extremely old and frail. The data for Japanese deaths is available showing ages. The previous variants were dangerous for the elderly this one nit so much as it does not enter the lower respiratory tract. Also we have vaccinations taken by many vulnerable, though these are not particularly effective, they still will work enough for most.

This will spread fast between all ages vaxxed and unvaxxed and will end fast.

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/01/10/pfizer-ceo-says-two-covid-vaccine-doses-arent-enough-for-omicron.html

But don't worry, your new vaccine is on the way. It will only mean your previous vaccines are useless and you need to buy them all over again. Oh, and only for the foreseeable future!

This is becoming a joke. It's time to face the reality that natural immunity, and the body's ability to fight these sorts of viruses, is the real way forward.

Not a big deal. Just live your life as you normally would. Let the paranoid lock themselves up and enjoy 10-20% fewer people on the streets. The paranoid need a few more months/years of fear mongering but eventually they will also see the truth.

“Had a good sleep for three months, everyone? “

Can’t say for everyone but me yes, absolutely. Like a rock every night.

“How is the 3rd shot planning going? It really easy amazing that they didn't learn anything from the debacle of last year.”

I haven’t had my first.

“If only the government had read the comments here, they would have come up with a perfect policy to prevent every single case.”

let me guess… many comments here probably are from people outside of Japan… Glad the Japanese gov doesn’t give a d… reading these comments… otherwise we would end up like the US et al.

How is the 3rd shot planning going? It really easy amazing that they didn't learn anything from the debacle of last year.

Right about now they should be faxing around the plan to start thinking about scheduling an exploratory meeting to decide whether they should consider early discussions about an initial conference call to talk about a booster shot. Meanwhile, cases will double every few days as has been the experience in other parts of the world.

The risk of Omicron to your average person is so minimal as to be almost irrelevant.

Yes!

The vulnerable might want to get the vaccine (booster), but for the rest of us the spread of Omicron IS the rollout of a broad long lasting vaccine or booster.

“This will spread fast between all ages vaxxed and unvaxxed and will end fast.“

yes, and before anyone downvotes me, please note that so far in this current wave, new infections have come mostly from young and double vaxxed folks in Japan. That’s understandable and am fine with that. Keep posting your whining about test count here. I would care more about the manageability of severe cases and fatality rates. So far both of these indicators are not alarming. Stay safe and live your life, reasonably!

But now hurry up rolling out the booster campaign. Better start still today evening!"

The booster campaign is slotted to roll out to general population in March ( bar ' unforeseen ' hiccups with envelopes, stamps etc..) ...by which time Omicron wave peak will most likely have come and gone without too much damage fingers crossed..super efficient govt response as usual .

It really easy amazing that they didn't learn anything from the debacle of last year.”

Yeah ..since when do we expect LDP to learn anything? ...then again why care since re- election is guaranteed no matter what.

How is the 3rd shot planning going?"

Not yet. 20 more meetings are planned ahead before making a decision, which then will take one more month to start sending those letters."

Unless someone forgets to stamp their hanko on the fax copy...then the whole process will have to restart from square one.

Good thing Japan has a high vaccination rate and Omicron is a weaker variant. Cases will go up but unless people get very sick they will just stay home (as a normal cold/ flu)."

Hopefully.

Meanwhile, cases will double every few days as has been the experience in other parts of the world.

Wouldn't it be more reasonable to assume that based on past data it will be different here?

Right about now they should be faxing around the plan to start thinking about scheduling an exploratory meeting to decide whether they should consider early discussions about an initial conference call to talk about a booster shot. Meanwhile, cases will double every few days as has been the experience in other parts of the world.

That would be an ideal solution since everyone will be infected before the conference call is even set up - and therefore it can be cancelled as everybody already got there natural booster by then!

Well, I'm so glad my idiot boss has cancelled work from home again this week, after exposing us all to COVID last week.

It really easy amazing that they didn't learn anything from the debacle of last year.

It really easy amazing ... not.

Will peak soon enough without hospitals being full and will notbe huge amount of deaths. The risk of Omicron to your average person is so minimal as to be almost irrelevant. 

The usual boosterism (pun intended) from the usual place. Unfortunately ...

A mild COVID-19 can still cause damage to multiple organs, trigger blood clots in deep veins, a new study revealed on Wednesday. Their new study, published in the European Heart Journal, showed that coronavirus infections leave traces even if those affected are asymptomatic. 

(https://www.aa.com.tr/en/europe/a-mild-covid-19-can-still-damage-multiple-organs-study/2466228)

So just as long as you're not bothered about heart, lung, kidney, liver function or stroke risk, you can just ignore Omicron.

G Z Sharif,

wrong, it does have an effect on hospital occupancy!

Just look at what's going on in (not only!!) the US.

Hospitals are overwhelmed by people who also have Omicron!

Concerning the numbers, I said it yesterday, lets wait!

And here we go, highest amount since September last year.

Way to go! No light at the end of the tunnel insight!

More panic and fear or is it?

Isn’t Omicron following the stock markets?

The markets do not react unlike the knee jerking politicians.

I just stay off the trains and buses…

Almost as many cases as one block in NYC. Almost as many tests as well. I guess this will burn through pretty quickly and rather unnoticed.

Hospitals are overwhelmed by people who also have Omicron!

Probably the biggest concern, covid may not kill a lot this time but other medical conditions requiring immediate treatments might if hospitals overwhelmed

Hospitals are overwhelmed by people who also have Omicron!

Probably the biggest concern, covid may not kill a lot this time but other medical conditions requiring immediate treatments might if hospitals overwhelmed

as_the_crow_flies

The data you provided is irrelevant to my comment. The study would have been before Omicron was present which is the dominant variants and the one to which I was referring. The symptoms of Omicron are far different than the previous, where the lower respiratory is effected, the symptoms are mostly cold like.

“I just stay off the trains and buses…”

Please do and leave space on public transportation to us. Most Japanese have stayed on the trains and buses the last two years, if they can’t work from home regularly.

Nice!

omicron you are doing so great there !!

only banding foreign entry won’t help you Japan. Booster doses only works

Let's see. It's been almost exactly two weeks since the NY's rush started and now we have the big skyrocket in #s. Just as predicted.

When I was in a public bath over New Year's, everyone had their masks on coming into the changing area. BUT after their baths, many came back into the changing area, dried off, got dressed, groomed and talked loudly WITHOUT their masks on. I quickly got out of there.

The rest of us put on our masks immediately after quickly toweling off and stayed silent or talked quietly. Common sense seemed to be grossly lacking for many and I'm not surprised at all to see these #s.

number of infected people hospitalized with severe symptoms in Tokyo is four.

The important figure. 4!

“BUT after their baths, many came back into the changing area, dried off, got dressed, groomed and talked loudly WITHOUT their masks on”

and I think most, if not all, of those folks were double vaxxed.

number of infected people hospitalized with severe symptoms in Tokyo is four.

The important figure. 4!

I tend to focus more on the bottom line, the number of deaths

Everyone, the third booster shots are already starting in Japan (from December 2021). Things have improved:

-- If you do not receive your voucher after 8 months from the date you completed your primary vaccination, please contact your municipality.

https://www.mhlw.go.jp/stf/covid-19/booster.html

I had two jabs already, received the certificate if proof from the government to day I'm fully vaccinated. Most people are starting to see through this now, I imagine the uptake for more jabs will be minimal.

A female physician and former officer at the Health Ministry by the name of Kimura Moriyo was on one of TV Asahi's Saturday newstalk shows explaining that health workers who have no symptoms of Omicron cannot afford to take time off work just because they test positive. 

She suggests the absence of skilled health workers who can help treat patients as a bigger problem than the potential harm that may be caused with the potential spreading of a mild virus.

The gist of it was that the system is under enough strain as it is and cannot cope with a shut down because other people may or may not catch what ostensibly presents as cold-like symptoms.

There is precedent for this, basically you take whatever America is doing and then do the exact opposite. 

https://cutt.ly/0IuGTuN

A Japanese scientist already came out a few weeks ago and busted this Omicron variant. It is also known as Human coronavirus 229E. It is common in Asia, so stop all the fear mongering.

This is compltely false information. 229E is not even similar to omicron.

The vulnerable might want to get the vaccine (booster), but for the rest of us the spread of Omicron IS the rollout of a broad long lasting vaccine or booster.

The experts of South Africa that you considered trust worhty say this is completely wrong, and they recommend vaccination to reduce the risk from Omicron, that means it is not a vaccine nor a booster, specially becaue there is zero evidence it will produce any long lasting immunity, or that it will be effective against other variants.

Anti-vaxxers just going to keep finding reasons to justify their belief.

Cases are rising up, be careful everyone.

This is completely false information. 229E is not even similar to omicron.

If people haven't said this yet, thank you virusrex for your countering of the rampant misinformation for those who just repeat every single day "move along, there is nothing to see here" about the pandemic with slightly different variations. . There are countless orphans and horrifying scenes in many undervaccinated countries.

Your assertions are easily googlable and well-sourced compared to the drumbeat of misinformation.

now don’t judge me but when I see these numbers I think of stars, comets, and raindrops

Can you give us a number of what constitutes an acceptable number of deaths, just so we know?

falseflagsteve

Will peak soon enough without hospitals being full and will notbe huge amount of deaths.

Well I guess I haven’t missed anything by not getting the 2 shots or the booster yet. More to come, maybe by variant this time?

Heard Kishida say he will speed up the booster so everyone can get one by March?? The incompetence is stunning. What are they waiting for? Oh yeah, gotta print up those vouchers.

The data you provided is irrelevant to my comment. The study would have been before Omicron was present which is the dominant variants and the one to which I was referring. The symptoms of Omicron are far different than the previous, where the lower respiratory is effected, the symptoms are mostly cold like.

Sorry @ false flag steve, last one was an academic study report. Maybe this spells it out in lay terms:

https://londonlovesbusiness.com/scientists-issue-dire-warning-that-a-mild-dose-of-omicron-can-lead-to-medium-term-organ-damage/

Please cite evidence that you base your assertion on that because the range of symptoms (ie temporary) of Omicron may vary (not far different) from earlier variants, that the findings of the study that mild and asymptomatic Covid 19 may lead to (ie long term) lowered organ and vascular function.

... does not apply.

All those placebo outdoor worn masks and draconian quarantine procedures, yet omicron is still spreading, amongst Japanese too.

The only plus for me is they are putting on extra trains in the morning in my area, and so, I can actually find a seat and the train is not crowded. Even with these efforts I am sure the numbers are only going to climb. As I stated, yesterday, the numbers were high following a holiday Monday and unfortunately I believe the numbers are going to be even worse tomorrow and Friday. Keep safe, everyone.

Can you give us a number of what constitutes an acceptable number of deaths, just so we know?

Actually I think the onus is on those who advocate restrictions to tell us what they think the minimum number of deaths should be before basic freedoms be taken away.

And if you are advocating restrictions here in Tokyo based on the 4 deaths (yes, just 4 deaths) we've seen since the beginning of December, I don't think we will find any common ground.

Geez, I wonder what entirely predictable New Year's behaviour people engaged in that would, predictably, result in this major new wave. Hmmmm... I do truly love the politicians being "so surprised!" by the rapid spread! It could not have been know, I guess, as they sat at home, eating osechi, or drinking in bars, with the news talking about how it's spreading rapidly across the globe due to similar gatherings at Christmas in other nations. Hmmm.... truly a mystery.

Also like how politicians like Yoshimura in Osaka said that "If they numbers go above 50 again (or was it 100?) they would have to act!" and yet, of course, no action... just talk of MAYBE starting up the voluntary quasi-stuff again.

the four deaths is incorrect. Refer to world of meters for more accurate numbers.

https://www.worldometers.info gives coronavirus deaths for all of Japan only. Not Tokyo deaths.

C’mon, I asked first…give us a number. 

Lol.

How is the 3rd shot planning going? It really easy amazing that they didn't learn anything from the debacle of last year.

Id argue that you didn't learn that the vaccine nor booster can keep you from contracting nor spreading the virus.

Id argue that you didn't learn that the vaccine nor booster can keep you from contracting nor spreading the virus.

So why take it? The two shots I took last year now have no protection against omicron?

ianToday  06:07 pm JST

number of infected people hospitalized with severe symptoms in Tokyo is four.

The important figure. 4!

I tend to focus more on the bottom line, the number of deaths

EXACTLY!!! THIS!!!

They should only track the hospitalized number.

Do we publish how many people got flu daily? That'd be insane, and that's exactly the world is right now

Ummm 4 people hospitalised??….so who the hell cares about the numbers??

natural immunity is best! Better than the rest!

move on and get over it!

media has no other click bait!

So why take it? The two shots I took last year now have no protection against omicron?

They still give you protection even if you fail to understand it

Some countries have less new cases, but the number of deaths in those countries is very high. As an example we see Uklaine that exceed more than 100 deaths today's report.

In Tokyo the number of cases are very high, but as I have seen the number of people hospitalized with severe symptoms are few. I wonder what kind of healthy condition are those who are among new cases number.

They will do quasi SOE now, and full SOE after it has already peaked. Then they will pat themselves on the back for hurting the economy after the fact instead of dealing with it right away.

natural immunity is best! Better than the rest!

Antivaxers still don't get this cruel joke. You need to get sick first to get natural immunity.

Gee, I sure hope these case numbers don't get any higher. :O