Japan¡¯s health ministry has urged drugstores nationwide to restrict the amount of fever medication that one customer can purchase at a time in order to ensure that the drugs will be available to all who need them. The message comes after reports of Chinese people in the country buying in bulk and sending it all back to friends and families back home.

The health ministry sent a note to relevant industry groups on Dec. 26, as part of an effort to maintain a reliable inventory of such drugs.

¡°To ensure a stable supply of fever medicines and pain reducers and make sure they will be widely available for those who want to buy them, we ask that restrictions be put in place, including limiting the number per customer and repetitive buying, to prevent large-scale purchases and hoarding,¡± the note said.

Media reports and social media posts have shown shelves empty of fever medicine at drugstores ¡ª with Taisho Pharmaceutical¡¯s Pabron series being especially popular ¡ª saying that both Chinese residents and visitors in Japan are buying them in bulk to send back to China.

A drugstore clerk in Tokyo said one customer bought a box full of 800 packs of cold medicine, Yomiuri Shimbun reported in December.

¡°If this continues amid concerns of the coronavirus and the flu spreading at the same time, it may affect medical supplies,¡± said Yumiko Aoyagi, a health ministry official in charge.

But at present, she said, there is no indication that the stocks will run out. The ministry also urged drugstores and retailers to avoid overstocking the medicine.

China has been hit by a wave of coronavirus infections since late last year, causing people to rush to drugstores to buy self-test kits, fever medicine and herbal remedies. The sudden surge in demand led to stock shortages, motivating friends and families overseas to purchase them and send them over.

Similar trends have been reported in Taiwan, Singapore and South Korea as well, causing local authorities to restrict bulk purchases.

On Dec. 30, Japan tightened its borders to travelers from China, requiring them to be tested for COVID-19 upon arrival. Restrictions were further tightened last week, with travelers from mainland China compelled to submit a negative test result for COVID-19 taken within 72 hours before departure to Japan.

All travelers from China ¡ª including Japanese citizens and returning foreign nationals living in Japan, as well as those who have been to China within the previous seven days ¡ª will be tested for COVID-19 upon their arrival to Japan.

Despite the rising cases, China reopened its borders and abandoned quarantine measures on Sunday, shifting away from its strict ¡°zero-COVID¡± policy.