Amid explosive COVID-19 spread, gov't announces 'targeted' measures

An official at the Songpa District Office in Seoul points to the figure of 119,922 daily COVID-19 cases reported on Wednesday, the highest figure in 110 days. Joint Press Corps

Cumulative cases surpass 20 million, critical cases at 3-month high of 284

By Lee Hyo-jin

The government announced "targeted" quarantine measures, Wednesday, while the country is grappling with an explosive increase of infections driven by the super contagious and antibody-evading BA.5 Omicron subvariant.

The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) reported 119,922 new cases for Tuesday, the highest figure in 110 days. The number of critical cases stood at 284 ― the highest level in nearly three months ― with 26 COVID-19-related deaths.

The cumulative number of infections stood at 20,052,305, surpassing 20 million in two years and six months since the country reported its first case on Jan. 20, 2020. The figure amounts to 38.8 percent of the total population of 51.78 million, meaning that roughly four out of 10 people have been infected with the virus at least once.

Korea has become the eighth country to see over 20 million confirmed cases, following the United States, India, France, Brazil, Germany, the United Kingdom and Italy, according to Our World in Data.

Five new cases of the heavily mutated BA.2.75 subvariant, called "Centaurus," have been reported in the country, raising the aggregated total to 14. All five new cases came in from overseas ― four from India and one from Nepal ― and include two children under the age of 10. Some medical experts view that BA.2.75, which is known to be the most contagious strain of the coronavirus seen yet, has already become prevalent in the country.

Adding to the concerns is a recent surge of infections from abroad as the number of overseas travelers has increased this summer season with the easing of travel restrictions. The KDCA reported an all-time high of 600 imported cases for Tuesday, up from 578 cases reported the previous day.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare, which predicts that the current wave will see its peak in around two weeks, announced it will carry out "targeted" quarantine measures targeting places and facilities that are prone to infections, rather than implementing comprehensive measures.

"Due to uncertainties about the coronavirus, in the early period of the pandemic, we imposed tight social distancing measures such as limits on private gatherings and the operating hours of multi-use facilities in order to curb virus spread," said Vice Health Minister Lee Ki-il during a COVID-19 response meeting.

Vice Health Minister Lee Ki-il speaks during a COVID-19 response meeting at Government Complex Seoul, Wednesday. Yonhap

"However, we now have accumulated data based on our two years and seven months of experience battling the virus. We also have a sufficient amount of vaccines, treatment and medical capacity to cope with the pandemic. Therefore, we will introduce targeted antivirus measures that focus on facilities reporting many infections, while allowing the public to carry on with their normal daily lives," he said.

Lee's remarks align with the KDCA's view that reinstating a comprehensive social distancing scheme is unnecessary, claiming that it is not cost-effective.

"We view that government-led quarantine measures would be less effective in the current wave which is led by Omicron subvariants," said KDCA Commissioner Peck Kyong-ran during a National Assembly session, Tuesday, in response to a lawmaker's question that her agency is not taking sufficient action to prevent virus spread.

"We may consider bringing back the social distancing measures if the fatality rate reaches that of the Delta strain or the hospital bed occupancy rate approaches a serious level," she added.

As a part of its virus response scheme, the health ministry said it will supplement quarantine measures for the military, where an average of 1,817 daily new infections were identified during the last week of July.

In cooperation with the Ministry of Defense, the authorities will conduct preemptive tests on military personnel returning from leave and ramp up PCR test capacity, while practicing "voluntary social distancing." It will also improve its quarantine measures in preparation for the upcoming combined drill with the U.S. scheduled for Aug.22 to Sep.1.

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