S. Korea: Daily infections below 4,000 for 5th day amid tightened curbs
The country added 3,097 new COVID-19 infections, including 2,813 local infections, raising the total caseload to 670,483, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).
The country reported 43 more COVID-19 deaths, raising the death toll to 6,114, according to the health authorities. The fatality rate came to 0.91 percent.
The number of critically ill COVID-19 patients stood at 780, staying below 1,000 for more than a week.
The government has imposed toughened antivirus restrictions since mid-December, as the number of daily infections had soared to nearly 8,000 following the implementation of the «living with COVID-19» scheme that called for eased social distancing rules.
The antivirus curbs, set to be in effect until Sunday, include a four-person cap on private gatherings across the nation and a 9 p.m. business hour curfew on cafes and restaurants.
As the daily caseload has fallen in recent weeks, the government is reviewing the option of relaxing social distancing rules again to resolve inconveniences to the people and to minimize the impact on small businesses.
On Wednesday, the government will hold a session to assess the danger level of the pandemic so as to make a decision on the possible revision of the current social distancing rules, as well as to devise measures on how to better respond to the omicron variant, officials said.
But the government has vowed to strictly keep in place other quarantine measures, such as a vaccine pass system, to protect unvaccinated people and to manage the country's medical system without a hitch.
This month, the government introduced a six-month validity period for the COVID-19 vaccine pass, which is required to enter restaurants and other major indoor multipurpose facilities.
Department stores, large discount store chains and shopping malls were also added to the list of the subjected facilities starting Monday, with a one-week grace period.
As of Tuesday, 43.14 million people, or 84.1 percent of the country's 52 million population, have been fully vaccinated, and 21.47 million, or 41.8 percent, have received booster shots, the health authorities said.
The health authorities are mulling giving a fourth shot to those with compromised immune systems, and President Moon Jae-in on Tuesday called for a swift decision on the issue.
The government also plans to bring in antiviral COVID-19 treatment pills this week, as it has secured oral drugs for around 1 million patients.
The current virus situation showed signs of slowing down, but concerns over a resurgence remain due to the Lunar New Year holiday later this month and the continued spread of the omicron variant.
Currently, some 12 percent of the total cases were found to have been caused by the omicron variant, and it is highly likely to become the dominant COVID-19 strain in the country as early as late this month, according to the health authorities.
The number of imported cases hit an all-time high of 284 on Tuesday amid the fast spread of the omicron variant in the world. The total imported cases so far came to 19,418.
Among the new cases from overseas, 161 were from the United States, followed by Canada with 16 and India with 15, the KDCA said.