Confirmed Cases Remain in the 3,000s for Three Days, Emergency Bed Secured... "Mild Patients Who Refuse Hospitalization Must Bear Treatment Costs" (Comprehensive)

Severe and Critical Patients Remain Above 500 Daily
520 Patients Waiting for Beds
Temporary Suspension of Visits at Care and Mental Health Facilities

[Asia Economy Reporter Seo So-jeong] As the number of new COVID-19 cases reached 3,034 on the 19th, marking the third consecutive day above 3,000, the government urgently moved to secure hospital beds amid the daily occurrence of around 500 critically ill patients. With the intensive care unit (ICU) bed occupancy rate in the metropolitan area nearing the limit of 80% and 520 patients waiting for beds in the metropolitan area, three additional base hospitals (255 beds) and four infectious disease specialized hospitals (415 beds) were designated. Furthermore, as the shortage of ICU beds worsened, mild patients refusing transfer or discharge will be required to bear their own treatment costs.

The Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters announced measures to strengthen medical response in the metropolitan area to expand and efficiently operate hospital beds. Kwon Deok-cheol, the first deputy head of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters (Minister of Health and Welfare), stated, "We plan to promptly expand semi-critical and moderate severity beds through administrative orders to secure beds," adding, "In addition to the administrative orders, we have designated additional base hospitals and infectious disease specialized hospitals."

Deputy Head Kwon said, "Nursing and psychiatric hospitals will conduct their own vaccinations, and nursing and psychiatric facilities will carry out rapid booster shots through contracted doctors or public health center visiting vaccination teams," adding, "To minimize infection contact factors, contact visits, which were allowed only for fully vaccinated individuals, will be temporarily suspended until the booster shots are completed."

He continued, "We will strengthen allocation and evaluation to ensure that hospitalizations are prioritized for patients who truly need ICU treatment," emphasizing, "If patients who have completed treatment or mild patients who do not require ICU admission refuse transfer or discharge, the principle of self-payment for costs will be applied."

On the same day, the ICU bed occupancy rate in Seoul was 80.3%, remaining above 80% for the third consecutive day. Seoul is currently using 277 beds for patient treatment, with only 68 beds remaining. Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum, at a meeting with hospital directors for metropolitan medical response held at the Seoul Government Complex annex in the morning, expressed concern, saying, "If we fail to overcome this crisis once again, the difficult journey toward restoring daily life may have to pause temporarily," and added, "The shortage of beds in the metropolitan area is becoming increasingly serious."

Prime Minister Kim expressed concern, stating, "Since the phased recovery of daily life (With Corona) in October, the number of confirmed cases has increased by nearly 30%," and "80% of these cases are coming from the metropolitan area." He stressed, "Above all, it is urgent to rapidly expand hospital beds," and said, "We will prioritize patient safety and manage ICU beds integrally without distinction between metropolitan and non-metropolitan areas."

According to the Central Disease Control Headquarters, as of midnight on the same day, there were 499 critically ill patients, with those aged 60 and over accounting for more than 85%. Notably, the proportion of those aged 18 and under and those aged 60 and over accounted for about 55% of all confirmed cases. Jeon Hae-cheol, the second deputy head of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters (Minister of the Interior and Safety), said, "We will expand the number of base hospitals for critically ill patient treatment from the current 12 to 15, securing more than 250 additional beds, and designate additional infectious disease specialized hospitals to secure more than 400 beds."

The government plans to establish a support system for skilled medical personnel, such as military doctors and nurses with ICU experience, to ensure stable staffing necessary for efficient bed operation. Additionally, the ‘Government Joint Special Inspection Team,’ which operated until the 17th, will be reactivated for four weeks starting from the 22nd.

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