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| An exhausted medical worker rests in a booth at a makeshift testing site in Seoul, Jan. 13. AP-Yonhap |
Daily new COVID-19 infections stayed above 4,000 for the third consecutive day, as imported cases reached an all-time high Thursday, prompting the government to extend some toughened social distancing rules for three more weeks.
The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) reported 4,542 new cases, including 4,133 local ones, raising the total caseload to 683,566.
The number of imported cases hit a daily high of 409 amid the spread of the Omicron variant across the globe, according to the KDCA.
The health authorities decided to ban all entrants' use of ordinary public transportation upon arrival and tighten rules on the proof of negative COVID-19 test results to stem the inflow of the virus. The measures will go into effect Jan. 20.
Forty-nine more deaths were recorded, raising the toll to 6,259 and pushing up the fatality rate to 0.92 percent.
Critically ill COVID-19 patients numbered 659, the first time the figure has fallen below 700 in more than a month, the KDCA said.
The government announced its decision Friday to maintain a 9 p.m. curfew on restaurants and cafes while raising the limit of people in private gatherings to six from the current four. The revised rules will begin Monday and run through Feb. 6.
The decision came as the number of daily infections has fallen to around the 4,000 level from as high as over 7,000 last month thanks to the tightened antivirus restrictions and the active campaign for booster shots.
Still, concerns linger over a resurgence of the virus due to the Lunar New Year holiday later this month and the fast spread of the omicron variant.
On Friday, the government began administering U.S. drug giant Pfizer Inc.'s Paxlovid antiviral COVID-19 treatment pills, a day after the first batch for 21,000 people arrived in South Korea.
Patients with a compromised immune system and those aged over 65 are on the priority list, the KDCA said.
South Korea has secured Pfizer's medication for 762,000 people, as well as oral pills made by U.S. drugmaker MSD for 242,000 people, with the second batch of Paxlovid for 10,000 people to be shipped by the end of this month, according to the government.
As of Friday, 43.38 million people, or 84.5 percent of the country's 52 million population, have been fully vaccinated, and 22.42 million, or 43.7 percent, have received booster shots, the health authorities said. (Yonhap)
