Bahk Eun-ji has been with The Korea Times since 2012, building a career across multiple desks. She began at the Business Desk, where she conducted in-depth interviews with key figures in Korea's corporate world. Later, she moved to the Politics & City Desk, focusing on education policy and social affairs. She later served as team leader of the digital content team, leading curation efforts on the newspaper’s homepage and reshaping print stories for social media audiences to enhance digital reach. Now back on the Politics Desk, she covers the National Assembly and the Ministry of National Defense, with a renewed focus on political developments.
Vaccine jitters increase among younger Koreans
Soldiers wait to be inoculated with COVID-19 vaccine at a military vaccination center in Daegu, Wednesday. Yonhap
By Bahk Eun-ji
Vaccinated people to be exempt from self-quarantine: gov't
By Bahk Eun-ji
A growing number of people in their 30s and 40s are becoming increasingly reluctant to receive the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine amid lingering concerns over safety, especially after some serious adverse side-effects such as blood clotting were reported.
Such jitters are expected to grow following the government's recent announcement that it will bring in more doses of the Pfizer vaccine, which hasn't produced such adverse reactions so far, during the second half of the year.
While Korea started vaccinations of around 176,000 civil servants aged over 30, such as police officers, firefighters and coast guard crew, Monday, only 58 percent agreed to receive the AstraZeneca vaccine.
In contrast, 91.1 percent of patients and 95.8 percent of staff at long-term nursing homes aged under 65 received AstraZeneca shots in the first quarter when blood clotting and other side-effects had not been reported.
Moreover, about 10 percent of people who made reservations to get the vaccine are not showing up at vaccination centers, according to health authorities.
The reluctance comes after dozens of cases of side-effects were reported here and abroad in which people developed blood clotting after receiving AstraZeneca injections, although no correlation has been clearly proven. Adding to the concerns, a 45-year-old female nursing assistant recently suffered a serious neurological side-effect heres after getting the AstraZeneca shot.
A health worker prepares an AstraZeneca vaccine at a public health center in Seoul, Monday. Yonhap
“When I saw the news about the nursing assistant, I thought it would be better to get infected with COVID-19 than suffer such side effects,” said a 42-year-old office worker in Seoul, who wished to be identified only by her surname Kim.
“I mean, most patients infected with the coronavirus in my age group recover relatively easily. I don't want to take risks.”
Kim Tae-yeon, 41, who runs a daycare center in Nowon District, Seoul, said she was also concerned about the rare cases of blood clotting as she agreed to get the jab due to the nature of her job.
“I know I have to get the shot because I take care of young children, but at the same time, I'm a bit worried that such a rare side-effect could happen to me,” said Kim, who is scheduled to get vaccinated next month.
Some people said they were suspicious of the government's announcement that the AstraZeneca vaccine was safe for people aged 30 and over.
“I will turn 30 next month, but would it be safer if I get the AstraZeneca shot next month and not this month? I honestly don't understand the government's decision,” said Choi Min-kyung, an office worker in Gyeonggi Province.
Meanwhile, the government announced that people who have been vaccinated will be exempt from the 14-day self-quarantine after coming into close contact with a patient, starting May 5.
“People who get the COVID-19 vaccine now can build up immunity by August at the latest. It means those people can live their daily lives more safely,” Yoon Tae-ho, a senior health ministry official, said during a regular briefing, Wednesday.
Such people will have to get tested if they are found to have come into contact with a person who is infected, and if they test negative and have no symptoms, they will be exempt from being self-quarantined. Instead, they will undergo two additional tests during the next 14 days, Yoon said.
Vaccinated people will also be exempt from self-quarantine after overseas travel if they test negative at the airport and have no symptoms. But the exception is not allowed for people entering Korea from countries where mutant virus cases have occurred, such as South Africa and Brazil.