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Korea reports 23 new virus cases, concerns linger over Itaewon-linked infections

Visitors waring face masks watch a reenactment of the Royal Guards Changing Ceremony, which had been suspended due to the new coronavirus, at Gyeongbok Palace in Seoul, Thursday, May 21, 2020. APThe Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) reported 23 new COVID-19 infections Saturday amid stepped-up efforts to slow the spread of the disease linked to five bars and nightclubs in the capital's entertainment district of Itaewon. The new coronavirus infections raised the country's total caseload to 11,165, the KCDC said, adding that two more patients had died, bringing the death toll to 266. The number of new cases has grown over the past couple of days due to infections tied to the nightclubs and barsOf the 23 newly reported cases, 10 were linked to Itaewon, nine were other community infections, and four were imported cases, according to the KCDC. Since May 6, when a 29-year-old man tested positive for the virus following visits to the bars and nightclubs, 219 cases have been connected to him and other club-goers, it added. The southeastern city of Daegu, once the epicent

May 23, 2020
Korea reports 23 new virus cases, concerns linger over Itaewon-linked infections

Five more foreigners deported for breaching self-isolation rules

An entry clearance officer wait for visitors from overseas at Incheon International Airport, April 8. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chulFive more foreign nationals have been deported from South Korea after getting caught violating self-isolation rules, the Ministry of Justice said Friday.The violators ― two Chinese nationals and one each from Pakistan, Poland and Britain ― have been ordered to leave for their home countries after failing to comply with Seoul's mandatory self-isolation rule aimed at containing the new coronavirus.Three of the five, who entered South Korea after April 1, when the mandatory self-isolation order took effect, were slapped with fines in addition to the deportation order, the ministry said, without identifying those fined.Under the compulsory quarantine measures, all entrants from overseas ― both Koreans and foreigners ― are obliged to self-isolate at their residences or government-designated facilities for 14 days. Foreigners refusing to accept the two-week self-isolation are denied entry to the country, while rule violators are fined and deported.With th

May 22, 2020
Five more foreigners deported for breaching self-isolation rules

Seoul suspends all 'coin noraebang' to contain virus

A coin noraebang is closed in Incheon, May 19. YonhapIn its latest effort to contain the new coronavirus, the Seoul city government on Friday ordered all coin-operated karaoke rooms in the city to suspend business ahead of the weekend.Under the administrative order which has taken effect, 569 "coin noraebang" will be banned from hosting guests until further notice.The city government said businesses and visitors that breach the order may face fines of up to 3 million won (US$2,420). It also plans to file compensation suits against them for treatment and quarantine costs.City authorities and police are scheduled to conduct on-site inspections of the karaoke facilities between May 25 and 31, it added."(The city) issues the no-assembly administrative order since it is difficult to manage these facilities under quarantine guidelines, as there are many cases in which coin noraebang are operated unmanned and are hard to ventilate," Mayor Park Won-soon said in a press release.Park also urged other karaoke facilities to strictly follow quarantine guidelines even though they were excluded fro

May 22, 2020
Seoul suspends all 'coin noraebang' to contain virus

Itaewon outbreak deepens generational rift

gettyimagesbankBy Jun Ji-hyeYoung people have become the target of criticism, especially from the older generation, amid sporadic group infections of COVID-19 linked to entertainment facilities such as nightclubs and bars. The new wave of infections here began after a 29-year-old Korean patient tested positive for the coronavirus, May 6, after visiting five nightclubs and bars in Itaewon from the night of May 1 to the early hours of May 2.Since then, the contagious disease has spread across the nation to more than 200 people, mostly in their 20s. The new infections, which came after the spread of the coronavirus in Korea was showing clear signs of a slowdown, has provoked criticism of the young generation in online communities. In particular, middle-aged people who are caring for young children or aging parents claimed that the young people showed an “easygoing attitude” amid the public health crisis. It has been known worldwide that the elderly are more vulnerable to COVID-19 than young people, and their likelihood of death from the disease is higher.Anger against young

May 22, 2020
Itaewon outbreak deepens generational rift

Itaewon-linked infections continue to rise, total at 215

A man wearing a face mask stands on the street near the clubs affected by the new coronavirus in Seoul, May 12. Korea Times photo by Choi Won-sukSouth Korea saw new coronavirus infections linked to nightspots continue to rise Friday, with a party venue just outside of Seoul emerging as another transmission site.Cases traced to nightclubs and bars in the Seoul neighborhood of Itaewon totaled 215 as of noon, adding another eight cases over the past 12 hours, according to health authorities.The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had reported 20 new cases nationwide from the previous day, with 11 of them coming from community transmission. Most of the local infections were concentrated in Seoul and the surrounding area, with six reported in Gyeonggi Province, surrounding the capital.Some of the latest club-linked cases were traced to a buffet restaurant in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, just outside of Seoul. People who had attended a birthday party for a 1-year-old tested positive, with a photographer who took photos during the event suspected of spreading the infectious viru

May 22, 2020
Itaewon-linked infections continue to rise, total at 215

Court lifts sales ban on Meditoxin

By Lee Hyo-sikMedytox received a court order Friday allowing the company to resume the production, sale and use of three dosage units of Meditoxin, its flagship botulinum toxin product. This means Medytox can sell one of Korea's most popular botox products until the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety decides on whether or not to officially revoke the sales permit issued to the company. Daejeon High Court lifted the ministry's order to suspend the sale of Meditoxin, which went into effect on April 17, saying the controversial administrative action could inflict irreversible damage to the company. Medytox asked the court to nullify the ministry's order, saying Meditoxin products were safe.“Given that the petitioner will suffer financial and other damage as a result of (the ministry's) order, it is urgently necessary to prevent such a loss by halting it,” the court said in a statement. “The documents submitted (by the ministry) are insufficient to prove that the suspension of its administrative order will cause any significant harm to public health.”The ruling is e

May 22, 2020By Lee Hyo-sik
Court lifts sales ban on Meditoxin

In Brazil, COVID-19 hitting young people harder

Workers bury a suspected victim of COVID-19 at the Vila Formosa cemetery in Sao Paulo, Brazil, May 18, 2020. EPAMore young people are dying of COVID-19 in Brazil than other countries, a trend driven partly by demographics ― the overall population is younger ― but also by poverty and the need to work.The South American giant of 210 million people is the latest flashpoint in the coronavirus pandemic, rapidly rising to third this week on the list of countries with the most infections. With more than 310,000 cases, it lags behind only the United States and Russia.Brazil's death toll meanwhile surged past 20,000 Thursday.A closer look at the data raises questions about the widely held idea that COVID-19 is mainly dangerous for the elderly.Of Brazil's victims, 69 percent were aged 60 or older, compared with 95 percent in Spain and Italy, according to official statistics.The disparity is partly driven by the age of the overall populace: Just 13.6 percent of Brazil's population is 60 or older, compared to 25 percent in Spain and 28 percent in Italy.But demographics do not tell the whole stor

May 22, 2020
In Brazil, COVID-19 hitting young people harder

Korea reports 20 new virus cases amid efforts to contain sporadic infections

A senior student is greeted by a teacher, second from right, upon his arrival at the Kyungbock High School in Seoul, Wednesday, May 20, 2020. APSouth Korea reported 20 more cases of the new coronavirus Friday as health officials are trying to contain sporadic group infections following the mass spread of the virus tied to Seoul's nightlife district of Itaewon.The new cases raised South Korea's total caseload to 11,142, and the nation's death toll remained unchanged at 264, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC).Itaewon has emerged as a hotbed for infections as a 29-year-old man tested positive for COVID-19 on May 6 following his visits to multiple clubs and bars in Itaewon. As of noon, 215 infections were connected to the case.To avoid a second wave of infections, South Korea has been carrying out more than 77,000 tests on those who visited affected clubs between April 24 and May 6.South Korea has not yet identified the origin of the virus that struck Itaewon, although health authorities assume it came from either North America or Europe. The nu

May 22, 2020
Korea reports 20 new virus cases amid efforts to contain sporadic infections

Coronavirus offers turning point in Korea's long-stalled push for telemedicine

A visitor wearing mask near a banner showing precaution against the new coronavirus, walks at the Gyeongbok Palace in Seoul, Friday, May 15, 2020. APGetting geared up for a potential second wave of COVID-19 infections, South Korea seems to be leaning toward embracing telemedicine despite unrelenting protests from a physicians' lobby group and civic activists.President Moon Jae-in's aides at Cheong Wa Dae are busy making a case for why such a system is necessary, citing the new coronavirus experience. Telemedicine is expected to be included in the Korean version of the New Deal, Moon's newly found signature project amid the virus crisis. Formally, they use an alternative jargon, "non face-to-face" or "untact" services, as critics view telemedicine as a prelude to full-fledged for-profit businesses by hospitals here."The (envisioned) untact medical service is intended to prepare for a second pandemic, which experts fear, and protect the health of medical workers and patients' access to medicine," a Cheong Wa Dae official told reporters on background. "The government will make thorough

May 22, 2020
Coronavirus offers turning point in Korea's long-stalled push for telemedicine

S. Korea reports 12 new cases of coronavirus infection

South Korea's new coronavirus cases slowed Thursday, but health authorities are still fretting over further community spread tied to entertainment facilities and a hospital.South Korea's new coronavirus cases slowed Thursday, but health authorities are still fretting over further community spread tied to entertainment facilities and a hospital.The 12 new cases detected Wednesday raised the total caseload to 11,122, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC). Of them, 10 were local infections.The country reported new 32 COVID-19 cases Wednesday, marking an uptick in nine days, as it reeled from a steady rise in nightclub-related cases in Itaewon, a popular nightlife area in the capital.South Korea has successfully flattened the virus curve with massive and swift testing, but sporadic cluster infections continue to complicate public health authorities' quarantine efforts.Cases tied to clubs in Itaewon have not evolved into explosive infections but have continued to increase steadily. The total caseload linked to the Itaewon cluster reached at least 197 as

May 21, 2020
S. Korea reports 12 new cases of coronavirus infection
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