COVID-19 Vaccinations Begin for Under 40s... Government Expects 800,000 to 1 Million Inoculations Daily (Update)

On the first day of COVID-19 vaccination for ages 18 to 49, on the 26th, a citizen is receiving a vaccine at the vaccination center set up at Sadang Sports Complex in Dongjak-gu, Seoul. Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Seohyun] The speed of COVID-19 vaccinations in South Korea is expected to accelerate to around 1 million people per day.

On the 26th, Son Youngrae, head of the Social Strategy Division at the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, stated at a press briefing, "As the number of people getting vaccinated increases, we expect the daily vaccinations to rapidly reach around 800,000 to 1 million or more."

According to the quarantine authorities, as of midnight that day, 370,493 people received their first dose, and 472,455 received their second dose, totaling 842,948 COVID-19 vaccinations administered in one day.

Starting from this day, vaccinations for the general public aged 18 to 49 will also begin in earnest. People aged 40 and under will receive mRNA vaccines such as Pfizer and Moderna at nationwide designated medical institutions or vaccination centers. Those who made reservations from this day until the 29th, a four-day period, will receive the Pfizer vaccine.

The vaccination target for this age group is 15,160,704 people, and as of the previous day, 10,149,165 (66.9%) had completed their reservations. The government expects that if vaccinations proceed sequentially according to the plan, they will achieve the goal of administering the first dose to about 36 million people, or 70% of the entire population, before the Chuseok holiday.

Meanwhile, the quarantine authorities stated, "Additional incentives for vaccinated individuals are not being considered under the current Level 4 social distancing measures." This is due to concerns that expanding incentives amid ongoing spread could have adverse effects.

They added, "The current social distancing system (Level 4 in the metropolitan area, Level 3 in non-metropolitan areas) will be maintained until next weekend," and "After that, and regarding the Chuseok holiday, decisions are still under review."

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