TOKYO (NEXSTAR) — After days of record-setting COVID-19 cases in Tokyo, the Japanese prime minister expanded the state of emergency to four new regions of the country.
There are now 220 people connected with the Olympics who have tested positive for COVID-19 in Japan.
Those 220 people are part of the 3,300 new COVID-19 cases reported Friday in Japan, down slightly from the record-breaking high of more than 3,800 new cases in the city the day before.
That total contributes to the more than 10,600 daily confirmed cases of covid-19 in japan, a record high for the country.
Olympic organizers believe they are adequately controlling cases in the Olympic bubble, thanks to the semi-regular testing of all stakeholders.
They say they are taking any violation of the policies and protocols seriously.
“In case a violation of the playbook is suspected, for a particular case, that will be known through the media… Then, we conduct the investigation and then based upon the investigation, we take the appropriate measures,” said Masa Takaya, Tokyo 2020 spokesperson.
At this time, roughly 27% of the Japanese population has been vaccinated.
That includes games Charles Nishikawa, a Games volunteer.
“I received a Pfizer vaccination twice thanks to IOC, so that gave me some rest of mind to some extent. And also once I started my activities, I see there’s measures to prevent the spread of the pandemic,” said Nishikawa.
Organizers have conducted more than 346,000 screening tests so far.
Japanese officials are asking residents to stay home and watch the games on TV.