"Voluntary Closure After Visit by COVID-19 Patient, No Government Compensation Received"

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[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Heung-soon] It has been confirmed that facilities included in the movement paths of confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus infection (Wuhan pneumonia) cannot receive compensation from the government even if they voluntarily suspend operations.

Kim Kang-rip, Deputy Head of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters (Vice Minister of Health and Welfare), explained at a briefing on the 10th, "If a business voluntarily decides to close due to an infectious disease, the government does not provide separate compensation," adding, "The current Infectious Disease Control and Prevention Act does not include grounds for compensation for voluntary closures."

The government explained that this was the same during the 2015 Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) outbreak. Even in the loss compensation through the government’s Loss Compensation Committee deliberations at that time, voluntary closures were not separately compensated.

Deputy Head Kim added, "The proposed amendment to the Infectious Disease Control and Prevention Act, currently submitted and under discussion in the National Assembly, includes a plan to expand the scope of compensation to institutions other than medical facilities, but it remains to be seen whether this will actually be reflected," and "Even if it is reflected, whether it will be applied retroactively requires separate discussion."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.