Photo/Illutration Graduates of a nursing school in Hachioji, western Tokyo, remove their face masks to smile while having their picture taken at a graduation ceremony on March 6. (Jun Sato)

Tokyo confirmed 340 new COVID-19 cases on March 10, up 24 from the 316 reported a week ago, according to metropolitan government officials.

The latest tally brought the daily average for the week in the capital through March 10 to 265.1, or 95.4 percent of the figure for the preceding week.

The number of serious cases in Tokyo requiring ventilators or extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, also known as an ECMO lung bypass machine, remained unchanged from the previous day at 39 on March 10, the officials said.

Of the 340 cases, 73 patients were in their 20s, followed by 56 in their 40s and 53 in their 30s. There were 69 patients aged 65 or older.

The metropolitan government is aiming to ease the strain on the capital’s health care system to the stage 2 level by March 21, when the current state of emergency is due to be lifted.

Under the four-stage classification set by the central government’s expert panel on the COVID-19 pandemic, areas in stage 2 are experiencing a gradual increase in new cases.

As of March 9, Tokyo had 2,660 COVID-19 patients, including those recuperating at home and other accommodation facilities, 1,361 hospitalized with the disease and 297 in serious condition who meet the central government’s definition.

To achieve its target, the capital needs to reduce those numbers by 560, 111 and 47, respectively, according to the metropolitan government.

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