460 Severe COVID-19 Cases 'Record High'... 70% of ICU Beds in Seoul Metropolitan Area Occupied

Deaths Surpass 3,000 Cumulatively
ICU Bed Utilization Rate Continues to Rise

Authorities "Medical System Still Capable of Stable Response"
ECMO and Ventilator Additional Purchases Underway

On the morning of the 10th, citizens are lining up to get tested at the COVID-19 screening clinic at the Songpa-gu Public Health Center in Seoul. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Chun-hee] The number of critically ill COVID-19 patients hospitalized reached a record high of 460.

The Central Disease Control Headquarters announced on the 10th at midnight that the number of critically ill patients increased by 35 from the previous day to 460. This is the highest number ever recorded. It is 26 more than the previous record of 434 on August 25, during the peak of the 4th wave. Of these, 79.6% (366 patients) are concentrated in the metropolitan area. The death toll also increased by 14 from the previous day, surpassing 3,000 with a cumulative total of 3,012. However, the fatality rate remains at about 0.78%.

Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said at the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters meeting that morning, "Various quarantine indicators such as the number of critically ill patients, deaths, and the infection reproduction number are deteriorating faster than expected," expressing a "nervous feeling." He added, "Although there is still medical response capacity, if gatherings become more active toward the end of the year and seasonal factors are added, the possibility of a crisis situation similar to the end of last year cannot be ruled out."

As the number of critically ill patients increases, the bed occupancy rate is also rising rapidly. As of 5 p.m. the previous day, 57.2% (641 beds) of the 1,121 intensive care unit beds nationwide were in use. Compared to a week ago on the 2nd, when 512 beds (46.1%) out of 1,111 were used, the occupancy rate has been steadily increasing. In particular, in the metropolitan area, 71.3% in Seoul, 73.4% in Incheon, and 68.4% in Gyeonggi are in use, with 70.5% (484 beds) of the total 687 beds occupied.

Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

However, Son Young-rae, head of the Social Strategy Division at the Central Accident Response Headquarters, said in an interview on MBC Radio's "Kim Jong-bae's Focus" that morning, "It is inevitable that the number of critically ill patients and deaths increase in the early stages of daily recovery linked to the scale of confirmed cases," emphasizing, "So far, the medical system is maintaining a stable response." Regarding the metropolitan area, he said, "It has the most beds and the number of patients is increasing intensively," adding, "There is no major problem."

The government is continuously increasing medical capacity by securing dedicated COVID-19 treatment beds and is also promoting additional purchases of ECMO (extracorporeal membrane oxygenation) and ventilators. According to the Thoracic Surgery Society, as of the 4th, there are 112 ECMO units available in the country, of which 38 are being used to treat COVID-19 patients. The government plans to sequentially introduce 33 more ECMO units and 60 ventilators by next year with a budget of about 6.7 billion KRW. Kim Ok-soo, team leader of resource support at the Central Disease Control Headquarters, explained, "With the current ECMO usage rate, simple calculations show that operation is sufficiently flexible at around 5,000 confirmed cases," adding, "These are intended for emergency use in urgent situations."

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