Gov't warns of tightening of social distancing level

A medical staffer stands at the entrance of the National Medical Center in Seoul, Monday. / Yonhap

By Lee Hyo-jin

The government warned of a possible raising of social distancing levels, Monday, if the country fails to bring the current triple-digit increases in new daily COVID-19 infections under control.

Amid continuous sporadic outbreaks across the country, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) reported 126 new cases for Sunday including 99 local infections, pushing up the total caseload to 27,553.

The authorities voiced concerns as triple-digit numbers of daily infections were confirmed daily over the weekend, despite the number of tests administered being lower than those on weekdays.

For local transmissions, the average number of daily infections has also steadily risen from 57.4 in the first week of October to 89 in the first week of November.

This has led the health authorities to seriously consider strengthening their social distancing measures to Level 1.5 from the current Level 1, the lowest of the newly-introduced five-tier system.

“If we fail to stop the increase in local infections, we will have to tighten distancing measures and this could again pose threats to our daily lives that we have been struggling to maintain,” said Second Vice Health Minister Kang Do-tae at a briefing held at the Government Complex Sejong, Monday.

Currently, the entire country except Cheonan and Asan in South Chungcheong Province is under Level 1, which allows people to carry on with their daily lives following only basic quarantine measures.

Under the five-tier system, Level 1.5 is imposed when the pandemic spreads across regions, restricting nonessential gatherings and the operation of multiuse facilities.

Kang urged people to follow individual quarantine measures such as wearing masks in all indoor facilities including schools and offices, and encouraged them to request coronavirus tests if they experience related symptoms.

The health authorities also began conducting tests at all elderly care facilities, nursing homes and hospitals nationwide as a preemptive measure to identify asymptomatic patients.

“After completing the examinations by the end of November, we will conduct the tests again regularly, every two weeks in Seoul and every four weeks outside the capital,” Kang said.

The authorities added that starting Wednesday, all passengers for flights bound to mainland China must go through two polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests before boarding regardless of their nationality in accordance with the country's strengthened quarantine measures. The tests should be taken within 48 hours before departure at two different medical institutions designated by the Chinese Embassy in Korea.