Three Years Since Japan Downgraded COVID-19, Over 20,000 Deaths Last Year
Three years have passed today since Japan downgraded COVID-19 to the same level as influenza. During this period, there was no large-scale outbreak in Japan, but more than 20,000 people died from COVID-19 last year, most of whom were estimated to be elderly people aged 80 or older.
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- 📰 Published: May 8, 2026 at 17:52
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Central News Agency
(Central News Agency Tokyo 8th Comprehensive Foreign Report) Three years have passed today since Japan downgraded COVID-19 (2019 coronavirus disease) to the same level as influenza. During this period, there was no large-scale outbreak in Japan, but more than 20,000 people died from COVID-19 last year, most of whom were estimated to be elderly people aged 80 or older.
On May 8, 2023, Japan downgraded COVID-19 to a "Class 5" infectious disease, equivalent to seasonal influenza, meaning that decisions on epidemic prevention measures would depend on individuals and businesses.
According to the "Asahi Shimbun," after Japan downgraded COVID-19 to "Class 5," the total number of patients could no longer be tracked. Instead, the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) of the Japanese government (equivalent to the Ministry of Health and Welfare) tracks the epidemic situation based on information reported by designated medical institutions.
Over the past three years, attention to the epidemic has decreased, but the number of people who died from COVID-19 in Japan is still considerable.
According to the MHLW's vital statistics, approximately 38,000 people died from COVID-19 in Japan in 2023; in 2024, approximately 36,000 people died, with over 90% being elderly people aged 65 or older; there was no significant decrease in the number of deaths from the epidemic in 2024, and death from infection became the 8th leading cause of death in Japan in both 2023 and 2024.
According to the "Yomiuri Shimbun," the MHLW pointed out that the number of infected people reported by designated medical institutions nationwide reached an average of 20.49 infected people per institution per week between August and September 2023. After that, the number of infected people gradually decreased from this peak. After August 2024, it has remained below an average of 10 people per week.
According to an MHLW survey, the cumulative number of deaths from COVID-19 in Japan from January to November 2025 reached 20,429, which is half of the 47,638 deaths in the entire year of 2022, but it is still high. The data for 2024 shows that 97% of the deceased were aged 65 or older, and 79% were aged 80 or older.
Naonori Yamamoto, a lecturer in emergency medicine at Nagoya University, stated that around 2020, the main causes of death for patients were severe pneumonia and blood clots. In recent years, after patients are infected, their conditions such as diabetes and heart failure worsen, and organs such as kidneys and heart become dysfunctional, leading to a high proportion of deaths due to multiple organ failure. Yamamoto directly stated, "COVID-19 has become a trigger for the worsening of chronic diseases."
Regarding the nature of the COVID-19 virus, the currently prevalent Omicron variant has not changed much from the variant identified in 2021. Tetsuya Mizutani, a professor of virology at Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, judged that "unless new variants emerge among wild animals such as bats, the current situation will continue." (Compiler: Yang Wei-ching) 1150508
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(Central News Agency Tokyo 8th Comprehensive Foreign Report) Three years have passed today since Japan downgraded COVID-19 (2019 coronavirus disease) to the same level as influenza. During this period, there was no large-scale outbreak in Japan, but more than 20,000 people died from COVID-19 last year, most of whom were estimated to be elderly people aged 80 or older.
On May 8, 2023, Japan downgraded COVID-19 to a "Class 5" infectious disease, equivalent to seasonal influenza, meaning that decisions on epidemic prevention measures would depend on individuals and businesses.
According to the "Asahi Shimbun," after Japan downgraded COVID-19 to "Class 5," the total number of patients could no longer be tracked. Instead, the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) of the Japanese government (equivalent to the Ministry of Health and Welfare) tracks the epidemic situation based on information reported by designated medical institutions.
Over the past three years, attention to the epidemic has decreased, but the number of people who died from COVID-19 in Japan is still considerable.
According to the MHLW's vital statistics, approximately 38,000 people died from COVID-19 in Japan in 2023; in 2024, approximately 36,000 people died, with over 90% being elderly people aged 65 or older; there was no significant decrease in the number of deaths from the epidemic in 2024, and death from infection became the 8th leading cause of death in Japan in both 2023 and 2024.
According to the "Yomiuri Shimbun," the MHLW pointed out that the number of infected people reported by designated medical institutions nationwide reached an average of 20.49 infected people per institution per week between August and September 2023. After that, the number of infected people gradually decreased from this peak. After August 2024, it has remained below an average of 10 people per week.
According to an MHLW survey, the cumulative number of deaths from COVID-19 in Japan from January to November 2025 reached 20,429, which is half of the 47,638 deaths in the entire year of 2022, but it is still high. The data for 2024 shows that 97% of the deceased were aged 65 or older, and 79% were aged 80 or older.
Naonori Yamamoto, a lecturer in emergency medicine at Nagoya University, stated that around 2020, the main causes of death for patients were severe pneumonia and blood clots. In recent years, after patients are infected, their conditions such as diabetes and heart failure worsen, and organs such as kidneys and heart become dysfunctional, leading to a high proportion of deaths due to multiple organ failure. Yamamoto directly stated, "COVID-19 has become a trigger for the worsening of chronic diseases."
Regarding the nature of the COVID-19 virus, the currently prevalent Omicron variant has not changed much from the variant identified in 2021. Tetsuya Mizutani, a professor of virology at Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, judged that "unless new variants emerge among wild animals such as bats, the current situation will continue." (Compiler: Yang Wei-ching) 1150508
Stand with the facts, every sponsorship you make is a force to protect press freedom.
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The text, images, and videos on this website may not be reproduced, publicly broadcast, publicly transmitted, or used without authorization.