Gyeongbuk Province Establishes 'Operation Suspension Criteria' for Senior Centers and Welfare Centers... Discretion Granted to Basic Local Government Heads

Following Government's Social Distancing Level 2 'Recommendation Level' Exception Recognition

Gyeongbuk Governor Lee Cheol-woo is seen on the 22nd recommending that the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters set the area to the 'Level 2 Social Distancing' advisory level during a video conference.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Dong-wook] Gyeongbuk Province decided on the 22nd the 'operation suspension criteria' for social welfare facilities such as senior centers and welfare centers within the province, delegating the discretion to suspend operations to the 23 mayors and county governors, considering the risk level of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19).

The operation suspension criteria apply when the daily average number of confirmed local cases per city/county exceeds the 'standard number' for two consecutive days or occurs three or more days within a week.

The 'standard number' is set as follows: for 9 counties with a population of 50,000 or less (Gunwi, Cheongsong, Yeongyang, Yeongdeok, Cheongdo, Goryeong, Seongju, Bonghwa, Ulleung), 2 cases; for 4 counties with a population between 50,000 and less than 100,000 (Mungyeong, Uiseong, Yecheon, Uljin), 3 cases; for 8 cities/counties with a population between 100,000 and less than 300,000 (Gyeongju, Gimcheon, Andong, Yeongju, Yeongcheon, Sangju, Gyeongsan, Chilgok), 4 cases; and for 2 cities with a population of 300,000 or more (Pohang, Gumi), 5 cases.

This decision by Gyeongbuk Province is an exception measure in response to the government's strengthened social distancing level 2 measures effective from the 23rd. During the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters video meeting on the 22nd, Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun accepted Governor Lee Cheol-woo's proposal to relax the mandatory enforcement of 'level 2 social distancing' measures to a recommendation level for local governments with low patient numbers or no cluster infection cases. Gangwon Province was included along with Gyeongbuk Province as recommended areas.

Gyeongbuk Province decided to strengthen COVID-19 prevention management measures similar to other metropolitan governments, including banning indoor gatherings of 50 or more people or outdoor gatherings of 100 or more people, and prohibiting gatherings at 12 types of high-risk facilities. Additionally, all religious facilities in the province were advised to switch meetings and events to online non-face-to-face formats.

Governor Lee Cheol-woo of Gyeongbuk Province explained the background of the criteria relaxation, stating, "While implementing strong quarantine measures, we will also consider the convenience and balance for senior centers and welfare centers, taking into account the damage to vulnerable groups such as the elderly and disabled due to the heatwave."

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