Japan Sets New Record With 8,103 COVID-19 Deaths this Year

Japan recorded 8,103 coronavirus deaths in the first 22 days of this year, setting a new record for monthly deaths since the start of the pandemic, according to the Japanese Ministry of Health.

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This January 22, the ministry confirmed the death of 326 people from COVID-19, bringing the total number to 8,103 fatalities from the virus in January.

Since the beginning of last December, the death rate from coronavirus has risen sharply in Japan. About 65,400 people died from the disease during the pandemic.

Globally, Japan, with a population of 125.5 million, is the sixth country in the world hardest hit by the COVID-19 crisis.

However, on January 20, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida asked the Ministry of Health to reclassify COVID-19, which is currently a class 2 disease, like tuberculosis or avian influenza, to become a class 5 disease, like seasonal influenza, during the coming spring.