Tokyo announces PCR test “Positive rate” for the first time 23:02 on May 8
Starting on the 8th, Tokyo will announce the number of new coronavirus PCR tests performed in Tokyo as a "positive rate" calculated by its own method. According to this, the "positive rate" has been on a downward trend since mid-April, and it was 7.5% on the 7th, but a person in charge of Tokyo says "it is still high".
Starting on the 8th, Tokyo will announce the number of new coronavirus PCR tests performed in Tokyo as a "positive rate" calculated by its own method.
According to it, the peak was 31.6% on April 11th and 14th. After that, it continued to decrease and was 7.5% on the 7th.
A person in charge of the Health and Welfare Bureau in Tokyo who calculated the "positive rate" said, "7.5% of yesterday is still higher than when the positive rate rose in mid-March this time. It can be said that the true decrease is due to the positive rate. ”
The city will announce the "positive rate" as much as possible on weekdays after 9th.
What is the "positive rate" announced by Tokyo?
The “Positive rate” that Tokyo began to announce on the 8th is not calculated by dividing the number of people who were found to be positive in the PCR test performed on that day by the number of people tested.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Government calculates the "Positive Rate" by dividing the average number of people who were found to be positive during the week until that day by the average number of people who were tested during the week until that day.
For example, the "positivity rate" on the 7th is the average of 22 people who were found to be positive during the week from May 1st to 7th, divided by the average of 292 people who tested during the same period. That is 7.5%.
The number of people tested does not include tests to confirm negative cases in patients who have already been confirmed to be infected.
Regarding the reason that Tokyo uses the average of the number of people for one week to calculate the "positive rate", the number of people who become positive increases suddenly on the day when tests for outbreaks occurring in hospitals etc. It is explained that it is necessary to equalize because the inspection system differs on Saturdays and Sundays.
Tokyo has decided to calculate the "positive rate" based on all the tests in Tokyo, but it is now possible to obtain information on tests conducted by applying medical insurance at medical institutions every day. It's from 7th.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Government explained that it is difficult to retrospectively add the insurance coverage test to the "positive rate" up to the 6th.
Governor Koike "One guide"
Governor Koike told reporters on the evening of the 8th, "Today's first" positive rate "was issued. It is one guideline."
In addition, the reporters asked, "Do you think that the daily" positive rate "will be one of the important indicators in formulating a roadmap for lifting emergency measures in the city?" On the other hand, Governor Koike said, "I think that they are all important indexes. We think that they are all important figures such as the number of infected people, the number of people who were inspected, the number of calls to the call center, etc."