South Korea - The Korea Times

New COVID-19 cases soar to 4-month high of over 180,000

COVID-19 test samples at a public health center in Gwangju, Tuesday / YonhapKorea's new COVID-19 cases jumped to a four-month high on Wednesday following the extended weekend amid the continued spread of a highly contagious Omicron subvariant.The country added 180,803 new COVID-19 infections, including 567 cases from overseas, bringing the total caseload to 21,682,816, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).It is the highest figure since April 13, when the daily tally came to 195,387 amid the worst virus wave.Wednesday's figure also more than doubled from the previous day's 84,128 cases. It is also about 20 percent larger than the 151,792 infections logged a week earlier."An increase in travelers in the summer vacation season and the recent extended Liberation Day holiday are expected to have an impact (on infection tallies) this week," Kim Sung-ho, the head of the interior ministry's disaster management office, said during a government COVID-19 response meeting.New daily infections had hovered below the 100,000 level on Monday and Tuesday for the first t

Aug 17, 2022

New COVID-19 cases soar to 4-month high of over 180,000

Gates calls on Korea to play greater role in fight against COVID-19 pandemic

Bill Gates gives a speech on Korea's leadership in global initiatives to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic at the National Assembly in Seoul's Yeouido, Tuesday. Joint Press Corp.Yoon lauds Gates for contributing to health equity by giving people in developing countries access to vaccinesBy Lee Hae-rinBill Gates, the co-founder of Microsoft and co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, said Tuesday that Korea is expected to play a greater role in the global fight against infectious diseases and called for a global partnership to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic."Korea is poised to be a leader in this work,” he said during a speech at the National Assembly, noting that the Asian country has “particular strengths” in manufacturing vaccines and diagnostic equipment and also possesses R&D capabilities to lead the global fight against the pandemic.“This is a crisis moment for global health, so this is also a fantastic time for our foundation to strengthen partnerships here with Korea, providing great ideas for new tools and more resources to help those mo

Aug 16, 2022By Lee Hae-rin

Gates calls on Korea to play greater role in fight against COVID-19 pandemic

SK chief meets Bill Gates to share commitments for global health

New COVID-19 cases below 100,000 for 2nd day; critical cases at 4-month high

People wait to take COVID-19 tests at a screening center in a public health center in Songpa District, southern Seoul, Tuesday. YonhapKorea's new COVID-19 cases fell below 100,000 for the second consecutive day Tuesday, but the number of seriously ill patients hit about a four-month high amid the continued spread of a highly contagious Omicron subvariant.The country added 84,128 new COVID-19 infections, including 463 cases from overseas, bringing the total caseload to 21,502,164, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).New daily infections fell below the 100,000 level on Monday for the first time in a week to come to 62,078. The decrease is mainly attributable to fewer tests over the extended weekend that included the Aug. 15 Liberation Day.But the number of critically ill patients came to 563, up from the previous day's 521. It is the highest figure since April 26, when the country reported 613 serious cases.The country also reported 37 more COVID-19 deaths, bringing the total to 25,710, the KDCA said. The fatality rate stood at 0.12 percent.COVID-19 deat

Aug 16, 2022

New COVID-19 cases below 100,000 for 2nd day; critical cases at 4-month high

Western, traditional Korean medicine doctors clash over terminology

GettyimagesbankConflict continues over English term for traditional Korean medicine doctorsBy Lee Hyo-jin Western and traditional Korean medicine, both of which are widely practiced in Korea, take different approaches in treating a patient.The former focuses mainly on diagnosing a disease based on a patient's symptoms and treats ailments by using drugs and surgery. In contrast, traditional Korean medicine approaches diagnosis, treatment and prevention as a whole, with the aim of curing the root causes of the illness by restoring balance in the body using herbal medicine and acupuncture.The roots of traditional Korean medicine can be traced back as far as 3000 B.C., according to its practitioners. Although the field has been influenced by ancient Chinese medicine, traditional Korean medicine is recognized for its own unique treatment techniques. It saw a significant acceleration of use by Heo Jun, a royal physician in the 16th century who authored “Donguibogam,” a treasured Korean medical encyclopedia.Western medicine was introduced to Korea late in the 19th century by Dr.

Aug 16, 2022By Lee Hyo-jin

Western, traditional Korean medicine doctors clash over terminology

Korea's new COVID-19 cases below 100,000 for 1st time in 7 days

People wait to take COVID-19 tests at a screening center in a public health center in Songpa District, southern Seoul, Monday. YonhapSouth Korea's new COVID-19 cases fell below 100,000 for the first time in seven days Monday due to fewer tests over the weekend amid the spread of a highly contagious omicron subvariant.The country reported 62,078 new COVID-19 infections, including 396 cases from overseas, bringing the total caseload to 21,418,036, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).The daily tally stayed above 100,000 for the past six days, with new cases reaching a four-month high of 151,748 on Wednesday.South Korea reported 50 more COVID-19 deaths, bringing the total to 25,673, the KDCA said. The fatality rate stood at 0.12 percent.The number of critically ill patients came to 521, up nine from a day earlier. It jumped more than eight times from 65 reported on July 15. By 9 p.m. Monday, local governments had reported 81,663 additional cases, up from 59,790 cases reported the same time the previous day.Daily cases are counted until midnight and announc

Aug 15, 2022

Korea's new COVID-19 cases below 100,000 for 1st time in 7 days

Fears of lengthy COVID-19 resurgence loom large

People receive COVID-19 tests at a temporary testing center in Gwangju, South Jeolla Province, Thursday. Due to the COVID-19 resurgence, the city reinstalled temporary testing centers that had been closed for 70 days. YonhapBy Lee Hae-rinLocal experts forecast that the current COVID-19 surge may ― rather than dropping sharply after peaking, which is expected to occur by the end of this month ― take a long time to decline. “After reaching a peak by the end of this month, the COVID-19 resurgence this time may leave a prolonged course of transmissions instead of showing a sharp decline,” Kim Woo-joo, a professor of infectious diseases at Korea University Guro Hospital, said Sunday. Kim explained that the number of people taking COVID-19 tests has gone down due to it being the peak summer vacation season, accompanied by the long weekend with the National Liberation Day on Monday, Aug. 15. Also, flood damage from the devastating torrential rains around the country last week has made getting tested immediately, more difficult.Choi Won-suk, a professor of infectious diseases at

Aug 14, 2022By Lee Hae-rin

Fears of lengthy COVID-19 resurgence loom large

New COVID-19 cases down for 4th day; critical cases at over 3-month high

New COVID-19 cases down for 4th day; critical cases at over 3-month high

People line up to get tested for COVID-19 at a testing center in Seoul's Songpa District, Sunday. Newsis South Korea's new COVID-19 cases dropped for the fourth straight day Sunday, but the number of seriously ill patients hit an over three-month high amid the fast spread of a highly contagious omicron subvariant.The country added 119,603 new COVID-19 infections, including 460 cases from overseas, bringing the total caseload to 21,355,958, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).The tally is down from 128,714 on Friday and 124,592 on Saturday.The fall is mainly attributable to less testing over the extended weekend that also includes the Aug. 15 Liberation Day.But the figure was 1.13 times higher than 105,507 a week earlier in the latest indication that the country has seen an uptick in virus cases.By 9 p.m. Sunday, local governments had reported 59,790 additional cases, about half the 116,030 cases reported the same time the previous day

Aug 14, 2022

New COVID-19 cases down for 4th day; critical cases at over 3-month high

Fears of lengthy COVID-19 resurgence loom large

New COVID-19 cases down for 3rd day; deaths at over 3-month high

People wait in line for tests at a COVID-19 testing center in southeastern Seoul on Aug. 12. Yonhap Korea's new daily COVID-19 cases declined for the third straight day Saturday but remained above the 100,000 level for the fifth day in a row amid the fast spread of the Omicron variant. The country added 124,592 new COVID-19 infections, bringing the total caseload to 21,236,355, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. Of the new cases, 480 were from overseas. The daily tally marked a fall from 128,714 the previous day, but it was higher than the 110,632 a week earlier. The number of seriously ill patients also increased to 469, up 16 from the previous day. The KDCA reported 67 new deaths from COVID-19, up nine from Friday and the highest since May 8, raising the death toll to 25,566. Of the deceased 67, 41 were in their 80s and 20 in their 70s. The fatality rate was 0.12 percent.The country's daily COVID-19 cases have been on a gradual dow

Aug 13, 2022

New COVID-19 cases down for 3rd day; deaths at over 3-month high

New COVID-19 cases fall; deaths rise to 3-month high

People wait in line to be tested for COVID-19 at a screening center in Seoul's Mapo District, Thursday. YonhapThe number of new daily COVID-19 cases in Korea fell Thursday after reaching a four-month record high the previous day, but new deaths climbed to a three-month high amid the fast spread of a highly contagious Omicron subvariant. The country added 137,241 new COVID-19 infections, bringing the total caseload to 20,983,169, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. Of the new cases, 522 were from overseas. Thursday's tally fell from 151,792 the previous day but surged when compared with 107,859 a week earlier. The number of seriously ill patients also increased to 418, up from 402 on Wednesday.The KDCA reported 59 new deaths from COVID-19, the highest since May 12, raising the death toll to 25,441. The fatality rate was 0.12 percent. (Yonhap)

Aug 11, 2022

New COVID-19 cases fall; deaths rise to 3-month high

New COVID-19 cases jump to 4-month high, deaths tallied at 50

People wait in line to be tested for COVID-19 at a screening center in Seoul's Songpa District, Wednesday. YonhapThe number of new daily COVID-19 cases in Korea reached a four-month high Wednesday, as the nation grapples with the fast spread of a highly contagious Omicron subvariant. The country added 151,792 new COVID-19 infections, the highest since April 13, when it reported 195,387 cases, bringing the total caseload to 20,845,973, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. Of the new cases, 615 were from overseas. Wednesday's figure is up from 149,897 the previous day and 119,886 from a week earlier. The number of seriously ill patients also rose to 402, up from 364 on Tuesday.The KDCA reported 50 new deaths from COVID-19, the highest since May 22, raising the death toll to 25,382. The fatality rate was 0.12 percent. (Yonhap)

Aug 10, 2022

Health