Much of the world may have moved on from the coronavirus pandemic, but a painful legacy lingers in Japan: hospitals continuing to restrict patient visitations, even in the case of people wishing to see terminally ill loved ones.
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In early 2025, Japan marked five years since its first Covid-19 case, after which the disease claimed more than 130,000 lives up until August 2024.
Infections have reappeared in seasonal waves even after the government downgraded the threat in May 2023 and placed Covid-19 in the same risk category as seasonal influenza.
For families who want to see hospitalised loved ones, Japan appears to be stuck in time. Hospital websites continue to post “Covid-19” bulletins about visitations such as requiring masks and temperature checks, setting time limits and restricting the number of visitors.
Now a group of doctors and social workers is demanding the restrictions be abolished or curbed, calling them a violation of human rights.
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“It’s unthinkable to me that they’re still this strict,” said a doctor in his 30s from the Tokyo metropolitan area on condition of anonymity, expressing a mixture of surprise and disgust at the continued Covid policies.