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Accelerated plan to fully vaccinate 70% of public by Oct. faces skepticism

A person goes through COVID-testing at a temporary testing center in front of Seoul Station, Monday. YonhapYoung Koreans reluctant to get COVID jabs; supply still unstableBy Jun Ji-hyePresident Moon Jae-in's assurance that 70 percent of South Korean people will have been fully vaccinated by October is facing public skepticism, as the supply of COVID-19 vaccines is still unstable and the participation rate of young people in the vaccination program has been lower than expected. President Moon made the comment, Sunday, during a ceremony to mark the nation's liberation from Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule.The government originally set the goal of having 70 percent of the entire population vaccinated by November to achieve herd immunity by that time.Moon's comments meant that the government will move up the timing of achieving such a goal by one month, despite the unstable global vaccines supply due to production problems at pharmaceutical companies, and moves by some countries including the United States to offer booster shots to their people amid yet another wave of infections led by the

Aug 16, 2021By Jun Ji-hye
Accelerated plan to fully vaccinate 70% of public by Oct. faces skepticism

New infections dip to 1,500s amid concerns over post-holiday surge

South Korea's daily new coronavirus fell back to the 1,500s on Monday due to fewer tests over the weekend amid concerns over a spike in cases following the Liberation Day holiday. YonhapSouth Korea's daily new coronavirus fell back to the 1,500s on Monday due to fewer tests over the weekend amid concerns over a spike in cases following the Liberation Day holiday. The country added 1,556 more COVID-19 cases, including 1,493 local infections, raising the total caseload to 225,481, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).Daily infections fell from 1,817 on Sunday and 1,930 on Saturday, but the decline was attributable to less testing over the weekend. The country added 11 more deaths from COVID-19, raising the death toll to 2,167. The fatality rate was 0.96 percent.South Korea has been grappling with the fourth wave of the pandemic amid the fast spread of the more transmissible delta variant and slow vaccinations.Despite the toughest-ever distancing rules, the number of daily virus cases has topped 1,000 for 41 days in a row. The country reported a record hig

Aug 16, 2021
New infections dip to 1,500s amid concerns over post-holiday surge

Public irked by government's flip-flopping on AstraZeneca vaccines

People are being observed for possible side effects after receiving their COVID-19 shots at a vaccination center in Seodaemun District, Seoul, Friday. YonhapBy Lee Hyo-jin The government's recent decision to revise the age limit on AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine as a measure to use leftover doses effectively has deepened public distrust in the nationwide vaccination drive. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said Friday that people aged 30 and above are now allowed to receive the AstraZeneca vaccine, a change from its previous policy that the product is only available to those aged over 50, due to concerns over blood clotting side effects. The decision to expand eligible recipients came as many unused doses have been wasted recently, as they were not booked through the online reservation system.“Amid the fourth wave of infections, we have decided to give more opportunities to people who wish to be vaccinated ahead of their inoculation schedule, while providing them with sufficient information on the advantages and potential risks of receiving the vaccine

Aug 15, 2021By Lee Hyo-jin
Public irked by government's flip-flopping on AstraZeneca vaccines

2nd batch of US's Janssen vaccine arrives in Korea

Janssen COVID-19 vaccine / YonhapThe second batch of 400,000 doses of Johnson & Johnson's Janssen COVID-19 vaccine that the United States promised to offer to South Korea arrived here on Sunday, officials said. The shipment departed from Tennessee on Saturday (U.S. time) and landed in Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, at around 12:47 p.m., according to the officials.The newly arrived vaccines will be administered first to prisoners and sailors from Aug. 23 after undergoing a safety assessment. They do not require secondary shots for inoculation, unlike other vaccines.The delivery marked the second provision by the U.S., following the June 5 shipment of 1.01 million Janssen doses, twice the amount originally promised during the summit between Presidents Moon Jae-in and Joe Biden in May. The previous Janssen shots were given mostly to soldiers. On Saturday, the U.S. Embassy in Seoul said in a press release that the vaccines are "for use in the general population as part of the international partnership for fighting the pandemic" and added that their provision reflected

Aug 15, 2021
2nd batch of US's Janssen vaccine arrives in Korea

New COVID-19 cases dip to 1,800s amid worry over spike in holiday-tied cases

Municipal officials wait to get tested for COVID-19 at Chuncheon City Hall in Chuncheon, Gangwon Province, after one of the officials tested positive, Aug. 14. YonhapSouth Korea's daily new coronavirus fell back to the 1,800s Sunday due to fewer tests over the weekend, but concerns remain over further spread of the virus following an extended weekend.The country added 1,817 more COVID-19 cases, including 1,749 local infections, raising the total caseload to 223,928, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said.Sunday's tally was down from 1,930 on Saturday and 1,990 on Friday.But the decline was attributable to less testing over the weekend, and still marked the highest for any Sunday since the first case was confirmed in January last year.The country added eight more deaths from COVID-19, raising the death toll to 2,156.Despite the toughest-ever distancing rules, the number of daily virus cases topped 1,000 for 40 days. The country reported a record high of 2,223 cases on Wednesday.South Korea has been grappling with the fourth wave of the pandemic amid t

Aug 15, 2021
New COVID-19 cases dip to 1,800s amid worry over spike in holiday-tied cases

Officials call for rapid vaccine supply during protest visit to Moderna

The government has asked U.S. drugmaker Moderna to speed up its delivery of COVID-19 vaccines to Seoul in accordance with a prior contract. AP-YonhapThe government has asked Moderna to speed up its delivery of COVID-19 vaccines to Seoul in accordance with a prior contract, officials who visited the U.S. drugmaker said Saturday.The request was made during a government delegation's visit to the headquarters of Moderna in the U.S. state of Massachusetts on Friday, they said. It came after the drugmaker notified Seoul that it could only supply less than half of the 8.5 million doses of its COVID-19 vaccine promised for August.Vice Minister of Health and Welfare Kang Do-tae, who led the South Korean delegation, told reporters after the visit that he delivered a message to company executives protesting Moderna's delayed vaccine supply and discussed countermeasures."The South Korean government expressed regrets, and Moderna offered an apology. We asked for a faster supply of a larger quantity of COVID-19 vaccines and Moderna agreed to do its best," Kang said.Asked about any specific supply

Aug 14, 2021
Officials call for rapid vaccine supply during protest visit to Moderna

New daily COVID-19 cases stay in 1,900s for 3rd day amid concerns over further spike

South Korea's daily COVID-19 infections continued to stay around 2,000, Friday amid concerns over yet another potential coronavirus spike after the public holiday running through early next week. YonhapDaily COVID-19 infections continued to stay around 2,000, Friday amid concerns over yet another potential coronavirus spike after the public holiday running through early next week.The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) reported 1,930 infections, including 1,860 local cases, raising the cumulative caseload to 222,111. Daily cases are counted until midnight and announced the following day. Friday's tally was down by 60 from 1,990 counted the previous day. Four more deaths were also reported bringing the toll to 2,148, Despite the toughest distancing measures in place, new daily cases have been in the four digits for 39 days, including Tuesday's record high of 2,223. South Korea reported its first case in January last year. Concern is growing that the current spread of the virus could amplify into a massive outbreak, as people are likely to engage in more activities over

Aug 14, 2021
New daily COVID-19 cases stay in 1,900s for 3rd day amid concerns over further spike

S. Korea allows administration of leftover AstraZeneca vaccine doses to younger population

A health worker holds a vial of the AstraZeneca coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine as Chile starts a booster vaccination campaign for those inoculated with the Sinovac vaccine, in Valparaiso, Chile, August 11. ReutersSouth Korea on Friday allowed administration of leftover AstraZenenca COVID-19 vaccine doses to people aged 30 and over amid concerns over unused vaccines being wasted, health authorities said.The country had so far only allowed vaccines manufactured by British-Swedish pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca and Oxford University to people aged 50 and older, following concerns over blood clots. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said adults aged 30 and older can receive AstraZeneca vaccines that are left over after people do not show up for appointments.The decision came after many AstraZeneca doses were recently discarded becaue eligible people did not show up for the appointments. Since the country launched its vaccination program in late February, a total of 21.98 million people, or 42.8 percent of the country's 51.34 million population, have received

Aug 13, 2021
S. Korea allows administration of leftover AstraZeneca vaccine doses to younger population

Koreans unhappy with gov't quarantine policies

People wait in long lines for COVID-19 testing at a public health center in Seoul's Gangnam District, Friday. YonhapAuthorities only relies on appealing to citizens' cooperationBy Jun Ji-hyeAn increasing number of people are expressing distrust in, and complaints about, government policies to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, as they have failed to contain a surge of infections despite having been raised to the highest level in the Seoul metropolitan area for more than a month. The ongoing fourth wave of infections has spread from the capital region to other parts of the country, with the daily new caseload having reached a new record of 2,223, Tuesday, while hovering around 2,000 for the rest of the week, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA)But the administration, which failed to predict the spread of the highly contagious Delta variant of the coronavirus, has yet to present more effective antivirus measures to curb the spread led by the variant. Rather, it has relied only on appealing for the people's cooperation in complying with its current measures. Pri

Aug 13, 2021By Jun Ji-hye
Koreans unhappy with gov't quarantine policies

Korea signs deal with Pfizer for 30 million COVID-19 vaccines for 2022

South Korea said Friday it has signed a deal with U.S. pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc. to buy 30 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines to be administered next year and has an option for an additional 30 million doses. AFP-YonhapSouth Korea said Friday it has signed a deal with U.S. pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc. to buy 30 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines to be administered next year and has an option for an additional 30 million doses. The contract is part of the Seoul government's plan to secure 50 million vaccine doses to cover the first shots of the country's population of 52 million for next year, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). The supply of 30 million Pfizer doses will begin in the first quarter of next year, and another 30 million doses can be purchased when needed, the KDCA said.The KDCA said it will consider buying an additional 20 million doses for next year, aimed at battling the spread of COVID-19 variants, such as the delta strain.The authorities said they will consider various factors, such as the latest study on efficacy against v

Aug 13, 2021
Korea signs deal with Pfizer for 30 million COVID-19 vaccines for 2022
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