Considering Home Treatment for Youth Single-Person Households Following Children (Comprehensive)

COVID-19 Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters Regular Briefing
Young Single-Person Households, Reduced Risk of Severe Illness and Transmission
Preparing for COVID-19 Surge... Priority for Admission to Treatment Centers

As the spread of COVID-19 continues, the number of new confirmed cases remained in the 1,300s for the third consecutive day on the 11th. Citizens are waiting for testing at a temporary screening clinic set up in front of Exit 6 of Samseong Station in Gangnam-gu, Seoul. Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Dae-yeol] The government announced that it is considering expanding the scope of home treatment patients in preparation for a higher number of COVID-19 cases than initially expected. This expansion is likely to target single-person households among the youth, who have a relatively low risk of progressing to severe illness and have no cohabitants to infect.

On the 11th, Son Young-rae, head of the Social Strategy Division at the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters for COVID-19, stated at a regular briefing, "In case an unexpectedly higher number of patients occur, we are considering mobilizing residential treatment centers nationwide beyond the metropolitan area or adopting home treatment methods for asymptomatic single-person households, mainly among young people."

Previously, the government revised treatment guidelines to allow home treatment for children under 12, considering the need for adult caregivers such as parents. Home treatment is also possible under self-quarantine conditions when parents are infected and unable to care for their children.

In addition, the government plans to allow home treatment for young people living alone, who have a low risk of transmitting the virus to others and a low likelihood of symptom worsening. Regarding COVID-19 patient treatment methods, the health authorities develop guidelines reflecting expert opinions and inform frontline medical institutions accordingly.

Son Young-rae, Head of the Social Strategy Division at the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters (CDSCH), is conducting a regular non-face-to-face briefing on COVID-19 response at the Government Seoul Office Building on the 11th.

Although thousands of new cases are reported daily, the capacity of residential treatment centers and other patient care facilities remains sufficient. According to authorities, as of the previous day, 6,746 beds are secured in metropolitan area residential treatment centers, with only 1,678 in use?about one-quarter occupancy. Dedicated infectious disease hospitals and semi-intensive care beds are also less than half occupied. Authorities report that no patient waits more than a day for a bed after testing positive.

Son said, "Home treatment involves medical staff checking patients' conditions by phone once or twice a day to monitor for any issues. We are considering whether this approach can be operated more actively."

He added, "However, even for asymptomatic mild patients, managing them in residential treatment centers is more effective in preventing additional community infections. Therefore, (for now) we are focusing on expanding facilities for residential treatment center admissions."

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