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| An official from Seongdong-gu Office in Seoul disinfects an outdoor football field Monday prior to its scheduled reopening May 6. Public outdoor facilities are to be opened Tuesday although officials are advising people to maintain social distancing./ Yonhap |
By Kim Se-jeong
The government will set up 1,000 clinics to treat potential coronavirus patients in the coming months in preparation for a possible second wave of the pandemic this fall and winter, officials said Monday.
"Clinics dedicated to treating COVID-19 patients will open so that we can detect and treat the patients early on," Kim Gang-lip, the vice health minister in charge of the government response to the COVID-19 crisis, said during a daily press briefing.
Infectious disease experts warn of a second wave of coronavirus infections later this year when the temperature drops again. No new treatments or vaccines are expected to be ready by then.
According to the government's plan, there will be two types of clinics: 500 clinics using existing public healthcare facilities with appointed doctors from local communities and 500 fully equipped private clinics with residing specialists.
"Five hundred clinics using the public healthcare centers will open first, then private clinics will join them," Kim said, adding the number can change as more discussions with doctors' associations are yet to come.
The government will also introduce a fee for remote telemedicine consultations for people who suspect they have COVID-19. A fee exception was made to allow remote medical examinations and drug prescriptions when the outbreak rapidly took hold.
"According to doctors, telemedicine took more human resources and equipment. Reflecting the reviews, we'll charge additional fees for remote consultations. But no worries for patients because they will be covered by the National Health Insurance Service," Kim said.
According to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC), Korea reported eight new cases of COVID-19 on Sunday, pushing up the total number of cases to 10,801. The total death toll was at 252, up two from the previous day.
All cases involved people who arrived in Korea recently.
Although the country's tough social distancing campaign nears its end on May 5, the government kept stressing that people must remain vigilant.
One reason to stay cautious, according to the vice minister, is that eight cases, four of which were reported in Daegu, showed unclear infection routes over the last two weeks until Sunday. "This means there could be a group of infected persons in Daegu who have not been identified by the quarantine authorities," Kim said. "During this extended holiday period, many are traveling, increasing the risk of infections."
On Wednesday, outdoor public gyms, arboretums, museums and libraries will open their doors.
Now, as tough social distancing guidelines that banned all meetings of all sizes are easing the government is commencing a personal hygiene campaign. In principle, they're not binding rules, but the government reiterated that respecting these guidelines are just as important as canceling meetings and staying home.
These rules include remaining two meters away when meeting people, and sneezing or coughing into your elbow or a tissue, and taking three to four days off when feeling sick.
But some criticized the guideline recommending time off from work for being unrealistic, saying Korean society doesn't encourage sick leave and that it can trigger new problems between employers and employees.
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