Authorities: "No additional vaccination recommended if confirmed infection history exists... No expiration for quarantine pass"

On the 8th, a citizen visiting a hospital in Yangcheon-gu, Seoul, is receiving a booster shot. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Chunhee] If you have tested positive for COVID-19, regardless of whether it is a breakthrough infection, you are not eligible for an additional vaccination (booster shot) after completing the primary vaccination series. Accordingly, the validity period of the quarantine pass (vaccination certificate/negative test confirmation system), which is scheduled to be set at six months, will also not apply.

The COVID-19 Vaccination Response Promotion Team announced on the 30th that additional vaccination is not recommended for people infected with COVID-19 before or after completing the primary vaccination series. This is based on research results and expert reviews showing that breakthrough infections after completing the primary vaccination increase infection prevention effectiveness.

According to research conducted through the 'ZOE Covid Symptom Study' application in the UK, for those who completed the AstraZeneca (AZ) COVID-19 vaccination, the preventive effect increased by 26.8%, from the previous 71% to 90%, if they had a history of COVID-19 infection. For those who completed the Pfizer vaccination, the effectiveness also increased by about 9.2%, from 87% to 95%, if they had a history of infection.

This measure applies not only to breakthrough infections but also to those who tested positive for COVID-19 while unvaccinated or waiting for their second dose after the first dose. Hong Jeongik, head of the Vaccination Management Team at the Promotion Team, said, "Additional vaccination is not recommended if there is infectiousness regardless of whether it is 14 days after completing vaccination or before. Similarly, even if infected and recovered between the first and second doses or while unvaccinated, after completing the first and second doses, additional vaccination is not necessary."

However, the Promotion Team recommends that COVID-19 positive individuals who have not completed the primary vaccination series receive vaccination after symptoms have recovered and isolation has been lifted to complete the primary vaccination. If individuals wish to receive additional vaccination after completing the primary series, it is also possible.

Accordingly, those who have completed the primary vaccination and have a history of COVID-19 infection will not have a validity period set for the quarantine pass scheduled to be set at six months starting from the 20th of next month. Ko Jaeyoung, spokesperson for the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, explained, "Unlike others who must receive additional vaccination after six months from completing the primary vaccination when the quarantine pass validity expires, additional vaccination is not recommended for these individuals, so the quarantine pass will be applied without a validity period."