Weekly confirmed cases decreased by 2.6% as of the end of last month
Severe and death cases continue to rise
BA.5 variant declines while BN.1 surges
13 cases of US outbreak XBB.1.5 confirmed
On the afternoon of the 2nd, when mandatory COVID-19 testing for arrivals from China began, a health status questionnaire was being filled out at the Incheon Airport arrival hall. From this day forward, all arrivals from China must undergo a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test.
Yeongjongdo - Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@
[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-joo] The winter resurgence of COVID-19 has slightly declined. However, the number of critically ill patients and deaths has increased.
According to the Central Disease Control Headquarters on the 4th, the average daily new confirmed cases during the week of the 25th to 31st of last month was 65,535, a 2.5% decrease compared to the previous week. Although the increase in confirmed cases has slowed, both critically ill patients and deaths have risen. The weekly average number of critically ill patients hospitalized increased by 9.8% from 528 to 580, and the weekly average number of deaths rose by 5.4% from 56 to 59. Among the daily average hospitalized critically ill patients, 518 (89.3%) were aged 60 or older, and among the deaths, 55 (93.2%) were aged 60 or older.
The infection reproduction number (Rt) was 1.00, slightly down from 1.04 the previous week, but it has remained above 1 for 11 consecutive weeks. An Rt above 1 indicates 'epidemic spread.'
The estimated reinfection rate, referring to people who recovered from COVID-19 and were confirmed positive again, was 17.90% (based on December 18?24), slightly up from 17.11% the previous week. This means about 1 in 5 to 6 confirmed cases is a reinfection. As of midnight on the 25th of last month, among the cumulative 27,448,341 confirmed cases, 1,044,926 were reinfections, accounting for 3.79%. Reinfections have surpassed 1 million for the first time since the COVID-19 outbreak.
The BA.5 variant, which has driven the domestic COVID-19 epidemic so far, is decreasing, while BN.1 variant infections are surging. BN.1 is expected to soon lead the epidemic. The BA.5 variant share dropped by 7.9 percentage points to 38.2%, while the detection rate of BN.1 soared to 33.3%.
Variant analysis of entrants from China showed BA.5 at 77% and BF.7 at 21.5%. The XBB.1.5 variant, which has recently increased in the United States, was first confirmed domestically on the 8th of last month, with a total of 13 cases confirmed (6 domestic, 7 imported).
As of the end of last month, the XBB.1.5 variant's share in the U.S. rose to 40.5%. There is no confirmed evidence yet regarding increased severity. It is known that the bivalent vaccines, including BA.5, show somewhat reduced but still effective neutralizing ability compared to the original Omicron variant.
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