Korea set to shift to new response measures against Omicron spread

Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum asks the public to stay home during the upcoming Lunar New Year holidays, during a press conference at Government Complex in Seoul, Monday. Yonhap

President asks public to stay home during Lunar New Year holidays

By Ko Dong-hwan, Nam Hyun-woo

The Korean government will soon shift to a new response system to deal with the rapid spread of the Omicron variant.

President Moon Jae-in called for swift action Monday to fend off the highly-transmissible variant, according to health authorities, Monday. The President also asked the public to refrain from visiting their families and relatives during the Lunar New Year holidays, warning that Omicron has become the dominant COVID-19 strain in the country as of last week.

Senior Presidential Secretary for Public Communication Park Soo-hyun quoted Moon as saying that the Omicron variant became the dominant strain and an explosive increase in confirmed cases could be possible.

"President Moon demanded the government swiftly take responsive measures," Park said. "Also, he asked the public to join the government's efforts by getting vaccinated, wearing face masks and refraining from having gatherings during the upcoming Lunar New Year holidays," Park added.

This year's Lunar New Year holidays begins on Jan. 31 and lasts until Feb. 2.

Moon made the remarks as the country saw a surge in Omicron variant infections. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said Monday the Omicron variant accounted for 50.3 percent of all coronavirus infections detected in Korea as of last week. This is the first time that the variant accounted for more than 50 percent of COVID-19 infections in the country.

Korea saw 4,830 more Omicron cases over the past week, putting the total at 9,860, the KDCA said.

Following the soaring Omicron caseloads, Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum urged the public to stay home during the holidays, citing the risks of an explosive increase in the number of confirmed cases after family gathering and travels during the holidays.

"While spending holidays in the past two years with the coronavirus, we have experienced how nationwide travel and gatherings can aggravate the COVID-19 situation," Kim said. "With sincere apologies, the government again asks the public to refrain from visiting their families who live in other parts of the country during the holidays."

He said the number of confirmed cases exploded in other countries after the rate of Omicron variant infections surpassed 60 percent, and family gathering and travels during the holidays will only worsen the COVID-19 situation in Korea.

"We remember the number of cases skyrocketed by 38 percent after spending the Chuseok holidays last autumn," Kim said. "Even though the Omicron variant has lower health risks, an exponential increase in the number of cases will overload the medical workforce," he added.

Kim asked people who have to travel during the holidays to receive their booster shots and to get tested before and after their trips.

The Minister of the Interior and Safety Jeon Hae-cheol speaks during a central COVID-19 control meeting at Government Complex Seoul, Jan. 24. Newsis

According to Minister of Interior and Safety Jeon Hae-cheol, the average daily number of confirmed COVID-19 patients hit 5,962 last week, which jumped 50 percent from the previous week, and it was due largely to the highly-transmissible Omicron variant which infected people mostly in Gyeonggi and Jeolla provinces.

Following the President and Prime Minister's remarks, the KDCA said it will speed up implementing a new medical response system at general medical institutions nationwide to improve the way it deals with the spread of the virus. The number of medical institutions that are affected by the new response system stands at 369 as of Sunday, but will be expanded to 400 by the end of this month, according to Jeon.

To streamline the testing and subsequent treatment processes, the new system will enable people to get tested for the virus and receive treatments at the same medical institution. Those quarantined at home can also receive remote care from a local medical institution under the new system.

Omicron seen through an electronic microscope / Homepage of Japan's National Institute of Infectious Diseases

The new system focuses on early virus detection and treatment for high-risk groups, including elderly people and those with underlying medical conditions. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests will be carried out on high-risk groups, while those in low-risk groups will undergo rapid antigen tests at testing stations. The self-quarantine period for patients will also be shortened to seven days from the current 10.

The new system will be adopted first in parts Jeolla and Gyeonggi Provinces, where the Omicron variant has shown the highest infection rates. Health authorities said they will conduct antigen tests at early COVID-19 testing sites for residents in Gwangju and rest of the South Jeolla region and the cities of Pyeongtaek and Anseong in Gyeonggi Province where Omicron's detection rates were higher than other regions of the country.

"We have confirmed that getting a booster vaccine jab increases by 29 times the amount of antibodies that can kill the Omicron strain," Jeon said, advising people to get booster shots as soon as possible.

As of Monday, 43.8 million people, or 85.4 percent of the country's 52 million population, had been fully vaccinated, and 25.24 million, or 49.2 percent, had received booster shots, according to health authorities.

Korea's daily coronavirus cases stayed above 7,000 for the third-straight day Monday. The country added 7,513 new COVID-19 infections, Monday, including 7,159 local infections, raising the total caseload to 741,413. Monday's tally is down from 7,630 reported the previous day, which was the second-largest number since the pandemic began two year ago. The record high is 7,848 infections reported on Dec. 15.

The country reported 25 more COVID-19 deaths, putting the cumulative death toll at 6,565. The fatality rate stood at 0.89 percent. The number of critically ill COVID-19 patients stood at 418, down by 13 from Sunday.

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