The government Tuesday approved an action plan for its responses to new infectious disease outbreaks that was revised based on lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Under the plan, Japan will promote the research and development of vaccines prior to an outbreak and take powerful steps such as declaring a state of emergency in times of a medical crunch even when scientific findings are insufficient.

The government will implement the plan flexibly while taking into consideration the impact of the measures on people's lives. The action plan underwent a full-scale revision for the first time since the original version was adopted in 2013.