Seoul City Launches Pilot Project for Self-Test Kits Targeting 'Call Centers and Logistics Centers'... "No Link to Easing Quarantine Rules"

About 23,500 Call Center Workers and 6,200 Logistics Center Workers Participate
Consulting with Related Agencies on Applying to Boarding Schools

On the 30th, a COVID-19 self-test kit for diagnosis was placed at the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters (CDSCH) meeting held at the Government Seoul Office in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced that it will conduct a pilot project to introduce COVID-19 self-test kits targeting call centers and logistics centers.

On the 13th, Song Eun-cheol, Director of Infection Control at Seoul City (Quarantine Officer of the Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters), stated in a briefing, "We will conduct a pilot project for self-test kits targeting call centers and logistics centers, which have a high ripple effect in case of cluster outbreaks, from the 17th until next month the 18th." Seoul plans to temporarily implement the self-test kit pilot project at high-risk facilities and workplaces with a high risk of cluster infections, evaluate its effectiveness, and serve as a catalyst for autonomous use by private and public institutions in the future.

This pilot project targets 29,516 people at 291 call centers that volunteered. This accounts for about 36% of the 51,700 call centers and 64,972 people in the district. The participants will conduct tests once a week at home using self-test kits distributed in advance.

For logistics centers, about 6,200 workers from 18 centers within the Seoul Complex Logistics Center will participate. This corresponds to 63% of the 9,776 workers at 46 logistics centers in the district. Considering the nature of logistics centers where workers change daily, Seoul plans to support on-site self-testing before work. Regardless of the pilot project, current quarantine rules must still be followed.

Director Song explained, "If the test result is negative, the employee goes to work and submits the used kit sealed to the quarantine officer. If positive, the employee does not go to work, reports to the quarantine officer, and then visits a public health center for a PCR test."

He added, "On-site self-testing is conducted in a space separated from the workplace with good natural ventilation, and if a positive case occurs, it is reported to the quarantine officer and the individual is immediately directed to get tested at a public health center."

Additionally, Seoul announced that it is consulting with related agencies regarding the application of self-test kits in dormitory schools and will implement it sequentially once finalized. Director Song said, "Since Seoul proposed the introduction of self-test kits in April and the pilot project is being implemented, we will evaluate the effectiveness of the project and promote autonomous use by private and public institutions in the future."

However, Seoul clarified that the pilot project is not linked to easing quarantine rules due to insufficient clinical performance verification. Director Song stated, "During the conditional approval period of the self-test kits, clinical performance has not been sufficiently verified, so they are not used in connection with easing quarantine rules. We will evaluate the effectiveness through Seoul’s pilot project assessment and clinical trials for formal approval, and consider various future uses."

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