Authorities "Announcement on Social Distancing Adjustment on the 3rd"... "Collecting Various Opinions"

On the 2nd, citizens are waiting for testing at the screening clinic of Seoul Metropolitan Seobuk Hospital in Eunpyeong-gu, Seoul. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Chun-hee] As the daily number of new COVID-19 cases exceeded 5,000 and medical response capacity reached its limit, the reality of the Omicron variant entering the country has raised alarm bells for quarantine measures. The quarantine authorities plan to announce strengthened social response measures, including adjustments to social distancing, on the 3rd.

On the morning of the 2nd, Son Young-rae, head of the Social Strategy Division at the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, stated during a COVID-19 briefing that regarding reporters' questions about when measures such as adjustments to social distancing would be implemented, "The Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters aims to decide and announce (related matters) tomorrow morning (the 3rd)."

Earlier, Park Soo-hyun, Senior Secretary for Public Communication at the Blue House, said the day before, "This matter was raised at the special quarantine inspection meeting chaired by President Moon Jae-in on the 29th of last month, and (regarding the adjustment of quarantine measures) the review has already been completed," adding, "If the number of Omicron confirmed cases increases, there may be large-scale adjustments to quarantine measures," thus forewarning of strengthened high-intensity quarantine measures.

However, Son emphasized, "The decision on to what extent and by what measures quarantine adjustments will be made is a matter to be decided through discussion," and "There is no predetermined direction." Regarding the contents being discussed such as strengthening restrictions on private gatherings and expanding the quarantine pass, he said, "Various measures come up during the opinion collection process," and stressed, "Listing the proposed opinions would rather cause confusion," asking the public to wait for the announcement on the 3rd.

Currently, the quarantine authorities are focusing on basic vaccination and additional vaccination (booster shots) for the elderly, whose preventive effects are a concern due to the passage of time after vaccination. Son stressed, "Blocking infection in the elderly is the most important issue," adding, "It is important to quickly administer additional vaccinations to those aged 60 and over who passed four months, and also to increase the vaccination rate among unvaccinated elderly."

Regarding measures to prevent the entry of the Omicron variant, he said, "We devised and announced measures yesterday (the evening of the 1st)," adding, "Rather than immediately adding something, we intend to add measures quickly and effectively." He explained, "Instead of designating specific countries and banning foreign nationals from entering, we judge that it is effective to quarantine for 10 days while checking whether they are COVID-19 positive and whether the variant is Omicron."