As coronavirus infections mount, Japan at last expands testing

Medical workers walk by tents set up to test for the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) infection at Kawakita General Hospital in Tokyo, Japan, April 17, 2020. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan, alarmed by rising coronavirus deaths and the spectre of the collapse of the medical system, is scrambling to expand testing with drive-through facilities and general practitioners helping to collect samples.

For weeks Japan has limited its testing for the coronavirus, which emerged in neighbouring China late last year, despite calls from many health experts who see testing as vital to detecting and isolating cases and slowing the spread.