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| People wearing masks at a shopping mall in Seoul, Wednesday. Newsis |
By Lee Hae-rin
The government will decide whether to ease the indoor mask mandate no later than March next year, health authorities said, Wednesday.
Interior and Safety Minister Lee Sang-min, who is also the second deputy head of the Central Disease Management Headquarters, said during a meeting at Seoul Government Complex, Wednesday, that the government will "map out a final plan" concerning the lifting of the indoor mask mandate by the end of this month.
The government will consult with specialists and hold an open debate on Dec. 15 before setting up the final plan, Lee explained. Since early November, health authorities mentioned the possibility of lifting the indoor mask mandate after a resurgence of coronavirus infections this winter.
The government will decide whether to ease the indoor mask mandate sometime "between next January and March, at the latest," Peck Kyong-ran, commissioner of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA), said.
Some facilities could remain subject to the indoor mask mandate in order to protect high-risk groups, the commissioner said, explaining that "voluntary mask wearing could be necessary to protect one's own health."
The officials emphasized the importance of the single quarantine system, referring to a recent move by one provincial government to go against the nationwide mask directive.
The Daejeon Metropolitan Government requested the disease management headquarters on Dec. 1 to ease the requirement by January for the pandemic-weary public. South Chungcheong Province Mayor Kim Tae-heum also said that wearing masks indoors should be an individual's choice.
Peck said the headquarters "provided enough explanation on the effectiveness of indoor mask-wearing (to local governments) and requested their cooperation in operating a single quarantine system." There was no objection from the local governments, she said.
As other major quarantine measures, including the social distancing regulations, have been discussed and operated by the Central Disease Management Headquarters, the easing of indoor mask-wearing regulations should also go through the same process, the minister said.
Meanwhile, health experts believe the end of next January could be an opportune time to ease the regulation.
Chung Ki-seok, the incumbent head of the KDCA's COVID-19 Special Response Team, said in an interview with a local radio station, Tuesday, that a "lifting (of the indoor mask rule) could be possible at the end of January."
Due to the recent surge in influenza cases, it is not yet an optimal time to ease the requirement, considering that the flu and COVID-19 viruses could spread rapidly indoors if masks are not worn.
Prime Minister Han Duck-soo told reporters at Sejong Government Complex, Tuesday, that health experts expect an opportune timeline for lifting mask regulations to come at the end of January after a winter resurgence.
Korea added 74,714 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, bringing the total caseloads to 27,483,568 according to the KDCA. It was the second consecutive day that new cases stayed above 70,000.
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