"If You Want to Book a Vaccine in Korea, Wait 111 Hours: Foreign Media's Sharp Criticism"

Record High of New COVID-19 Cases as of the 28th
NYT: "Korea Not Aggressively Ordering Vaccine Supplies in Early Development Stage"

[Asia Economy Reporter Na Ye-eun] The New York Times (NYT) recently reported on the ongoing operational issues with South Korea's COVID-19 vaccine reservation website, stating that "South Korea, once a model country for COVID-19 prevention, has failed its vaccination program for several months."

On the 28th (local time), the NYT published an article titled "Want a Vaccine Reservation in South Korea? Try Waiting 111 Hours."

The NYT introduced cases where photos capturing pop-up windows such as "401,032 people are waiting ahead of you" and "Estimated wait time: 111 hours 23 minutes 52 seconds" on South Korea's COVID-19 vaccine reservation homepage were shared, noting that "the majority of Koreans are still waiting to get vaccinated."

The outlet explained, "South Korea, once regarded as a model for pandemic control, has been struggling with its vaccination program for months," adding, "South Korea ranks among the lowest in vaccination rates among the Group of Twenty (G20) countries." As of the 28th, South Korea's vaccination rate stands at 34.9%, significantly lower than other advanced countries with rates between 55% and 70%.

It continued, "Last year, South Korea received praise for avoiding severe lockdowns seen in other countries through strong testing and contact tracing programs. The South Korean economy was among the least affected by the pandemic," and "The government was so proud of its success in controlling infections that it even coined the term 'K-quarantine.'"

However, "Because the virus was almost under control, South Korea did not aggressively order vaccine supplies during the early development stages, and the results have become painfully clear," it emphasized.

The NYT diagnosed that the government’s lack of strong push for early vaccine procurement placed South Korea at the back of the delivery line. When large quantities became necessary, only a few vaccine manufacturers were struggling to meet global demand, inevitably causing supply bottlenecks.

The NYT stated, "The national urgency for vaccination put immense political pressure on President Moon Jae-in," and explained, "Although the government secured some supplies through the South Korea-U.S. summit and vaccine swaps with Israel, it is still insufficient."

Meanwhile, the Central Disease Control Headquarters reported that as of midnight on the 28th, there were 1,896 new confirmed cases, 531 more than the previous day’s 1,365. This also exceeds the previous highest record of 1,842 cases reported at midnight on the 22nd. With the highly transmissible Delta variant spreading and the summer holiday season bringing crowds nationwide, concerns are rising that the rate of spread may accelerate further.