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| A healthcare worker at a COVID-19 screening center in Incheon, west of Seoul, Tuesday. Yonhap |
Experts say it's premature to treat coronavirus like seasonal flu
By Lee Hyo-jin
The Omicron variant has driven up the number of COVID-19 infections to an unprecedented level around the world, while some countries have lifted antivirus measures and opted to treat the coronavirus like an endemic disease like the seasonal flu.
The United Kingdom and Denmark have drastically eased COVID-19 restrictions, including face mask mandates, while Austria and the Netherlands have lifted some of their stringent lockdown measures.
The decisions came as the highly contagious Omicron variant has been found to cause less severe symptoms than its earlier variants.
Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) commissioner Jeong Eun-kyeong, however, was cautious about easing restrictions. She noted it is premature to consider treating COVID-19 like the seasonal flu.
"Given that the coronavirus is much more contagious than the flu virus and more than twice as fatal, it is premature to make such decisions," she said during a National Assembly session, Monday.
But she admitted that easing regulations would be possible in the long term, saying, "It would become an endemic in the end, but for now, there are a lot of uncertainties."
With the Omicron variant sweeping across the nation, Korea has continued to see record high daily caseloads in recent weeks, pushing up the aggregate total to over 1 million on Sunday.
The KDCA added 36,719 new infections for Monday, including 36,619 local transmissions. The figure has stayed above 35,000 for four consecutive days.
Medical experts predict the upward trend to continue, while possibly slowing down in April. But they gave mixed responses as to whether the country would be able to treat COVID-19 like the seasonal flu, following the wave of the Omicron variant.
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| People stand in line to receive a COVID-19 test at a testing center near Seoul Station, Tuesday. Yonhap |
Chon Eun-mi, a respiratory disease professor at Ewha Womans University Mokdong Hospital said the worst has yet to come.
"Omicron is set to show its full force in the country. And when it does, vaccines, masks and epidemiological tracings would do little to curb the virus spread," she told The Korea Times, Tuesday.
But she voiced cautious optimism that Omicron may be a silver lining.
"Although the variant is known to be more than three times more contagious than its predecessor Delta, it is shown to be only one-third to one-fifth as lethal."
She added, "Recent studies suggest that the Omicron wave may leave some people with super immunity, a combined protection of vaccine antibodies and natural antibodies, resulting from a breakthrough infection."
Chon explained that super immunity, also known as hybrid immunity, could offer protection against both Omicron and Delta. "So unless a stronger variant emerges after Omicron, we may be able to shift to a new phase of the pandemic, where the virus could become more manageable than now."
But some experts disagree.
Kim Woo-joo, an infectious disease professor at Korea University Guro Hospital, believed it is premature to make such plans, when the country is experiencing its worst pandemic situation yet.
"Of course, transitioning to an endemic phase would be the best scenario for a pandemic exit plan. But we are not at that point yet," he said.
"The country may see up to 200,000 daily caseloads in the coming weeks. Although Omicron is less lethal, the surge of infections would inevitably lead to a soaring number of critical cases," Kim said, urging the government to increase medical capacity and improve home treatment policies.
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