"COVID-19 Cases Expected to Reach 350,000 Weekly by the End of This Month"

Prescription of Therapeutics in July-August Increases Over 40 Times Compared to May-June
Government Supplies 260,000 Therapeutic Doses and 5 Million Diagnostic Kits

The health authorities predicted that the spread of COVID-19 will increase to 350,000 cases per week by the end of this month, reaching last year's highest level of outbreak.

On the 19th, Hong Jeong-ik, Director of the Infectious Disease Policy Bureau at the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, said in a radio interview, "The current number of patients is about half of that in August last year," and added, "This projection is based on the analysis of summer outbreak trends and patterns over the past two years."

Regarding the reason for the increased spread during midsummer, he explained, "This summer's severe heatwave has likely contributed due to insufficient air conditioning and ventilation," calling it "a situation conducive to transmission."

On the shortage of some COVID-19 treatments, he explained that the number of patients far exceeded the authorities' expectations. Director Hong said, "In July and August last year, prescriptions for treatments increased about 3 to 4 times compared to May and June when COVID-19 was not prevalent, but this year, the increase was more than 40 times, causing a temporary shortage of medicines at pharmacies."

He added, "Through consultations with pharmaceutical companies, we began supplying additional COVID-19 treatments starting last week," and "We will ensure sufficient supply, including surplus stock, to pharmacies nationwide by the end of this month."

Regarding the shortage of COVID-19 diagnostic kits, he explained, "Although products were temporarily depleted due to a surge in patients, monitoring by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety shows that production and supply are increasing," and "We plan to supply more than 5 million self-test kits in August."

The government is maintaining the current 'interest' level in response to COVID-19, emphasizing infection prevention guidelines, monitoring patient trends, and preparing countermeasures for the upcoming Chuseok holiday.

Director Hong emphasized, "Although the number of patients is increasing, most are mild cases, so we believe management is sufficient at this stage," and "We are focusing on monitoring high-risk groups and will closely observe outbreak trends to ensure no disruption in treatment supply through joint efforts with related ministries."

Regarding transmission in workplaces and schools, he said, "We distributed guidelines to schools about staying home if symptomatic and recognizing absences as excused, and we asked companies to allow employees to rest if they are sick."